The Chicago Bears are inching dangerously close to not making the playoffs. After a loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the Bears season appears to be taking a turn for the worst. Facing the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night certainly will not be an easy task and if fans were hoping to see the return of quarterback Jay Cutler, they could be left waiting.
Head coach Marc Trestman refuses to upgrade Cutler's label from week-to-week. The quarterback has missed the last two games with a high left ankle sprain and the team medical staff has not yet cleared him for a return to practice. While the Bears do have a long week to prepare for the Cowboys, if Cutler is not cleared in the next couple of days, he will not be seen in Week 14.
"I still feel like I'm going to get back here relatively soon," Cutler said, via the Chicago Tribune. "But we've got to talk to the doctors. "I want to play. There's no doubt about it. I want to play. It's just the trainers and the doctors and going through the scenario we have to go through."
Cutler has done some light running on the treadmill but has not seen any field action since the initial injury. The quarterback understands the team will not let him back unless they are fully confident the injury has healed and will not limit him. However, the Bears are in the midst of a final push for the playoffs and need Cutler back. Not to mention, the quarterback is working through the final year of his contract and would like to step on the field to prove he deserves a pay raise.
Cutler is well-aware that Josh McCown has proved himself worthy to stick around the team for the long term. While he might not be a franchise quarterback, McCown is no slouch. Against Minnesota, he put up 355 yards on 23 of 36 passing and two scores in yet another strong performance. He made one poor decision in the game, but all in all, McCown could carry the Bears through the final four games. He has nine touchdown passes to his one interception. Cutler has 13 touchdown passes and eight interceptions.
"I know what my role is," McCown said. "I am the backup. If Jay is healthy, he is our starter and I'll go back to doing what I was doing. Every team wants to have its starting quarterback out there, so if he's healthy, it's the best thing for him to be out there."
McCown is saying all the right things, but if Cutler cannot play on Monday night, that should say something about the trust the team has in the backup. Cutler's 2014 future is looking more muddy by each passing week.
