The Chicago Bears will start Jay Cutler in Sunday’s season finale against the Minnesota Vikings. This decision came down after backup Jimmy Clausen was sidelined due to a concussion. The previous game against the Detroit Lions was Clausen’s first NFL start since the 2010-2011 season with the Carolina Panthers. With Cutler starting and Clausen out, rookie David Fales will be the backup quarterback.
Clausen suffered a head-to-head collision while sliding with Detroit defensive end Ezekiel Ansah. Ansah was flagged for unnecessary roughness after the play was over. Clausen appeared to be fine, remained in and finished out the game. However he did not start experiencing concussion symptoms until after the game was over. Clausen performed adequately in a losing effort against the Lions, throwing for 181 yards, two touchdowns and only one interception.
As for Jay Cutler, this will be his first start after being benched in favor of Clausen due to his poor performance. Cutler leads the league with 24 turnovers, 18 interceptions and six lost fumbles. Head Coach Marc Trestman made this surprise move last week citing Cutler’s poor performance as the reason for his benching. Cutler is currently the highest-paid offensive player in the NFL after signing a seven-year, 126 million dollar (54 million guaranteed) contract in the offseason. Cutler has made 15 million dollars this season alone.
Rookie quarterback David Fales will backup Cutler in lieu of Clausen. Fales was drafted by the Bears out of San Jose State in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He signed a four-year deal with Chicago and showed great upside in training camp. Fales started and played much of the final preseason game of 2014. Fales was waived in September then resigned with the Bears and was put on the practice squad. Fales was promoted to the 53-man roster in early December. He could see action in Sunday’s game if Cutler struggles.