Jay Cutler is ‘week-to-week’ with ankle injury

Trestman has reiterated that Cutler will be the Bears’ starter when healthy, despite McCown’s best efforts. The Bears may need Cutler to return soon if they hope to make the playoffs. At 6-6 overall, they are hoping to scrape out a playoff spot. They are effectively two games behind the 7-5 Detroit Lions for the division lead having lost both meetings against Detroit this season.

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Head coach Marc Trestman said on Monday that he made a mistake not pulling Cutler earlier after McCown led the team down the field for a late touchdown, although a failed two point conversion attempt gave the Lions a 21-19 victory.

Cutler completed 21-of-40 passes for 250 yards, one touchdown and one interception against the Lions. In eight starts in 2013, Cutler has completed 63 percent of his passes for 1,908 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2013 season.

Through seven games in 2013, Cutler has completed 64.9 percent of his passes for 1,658 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions, leading the Bears to a 4-3 start. After three full 16-game seasons as a starter, Cutler has missed eight games in the last three seasons, including six games in 2011 after suffering a broken thumb.

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Now faced with another injury scare, it makes sense for the Bears to find a player with some familiarity with the offense. The 29-year-old Palmer doesn’t have a ton of game experience in the NFL, having never thrown a touchdown in his career.

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UPDATE: Jay Cutler has suffered a groin injury and has been ruled out for the rest of the game. After limping into the tunnel, he had to be carried to a cart and shuttled to the training room.

Cutler appeared to injure his hip after being sacked in the second quarter of Sunday’s game. He left the field under his own power, but headed very gingerly into the locker room and seemed to be in a lot of pain.