Thread: Lovie: Hopefully Cutler will play vs. Seahawks

Bears make the right call shutting down Cutler

Concussion will sideline QB this Sunday. Matt Bowen

From a competitive standpoint—and a game plan standpoint—shutting QB Jay Cutler down for this weekend’s game at Carolina will hurt Chicago. No question about that. But, we will get to that tomorrow when I post my Week 5 tip sheet.

For today, we should applaud the Bears for making this call. Concussions are no joke, and although they have been a big topic of discussion this season in the NFL, until we see a club sit that player down—completely—there isn’t a solution. I had multiple concussions during my career, and I talked about this in a column over at the Chicago Tribune a couple of weeks back. I came back and played the following week in the 2003 season after suffering a black out concussion—complete with amnesia—and I felt the impact on that field. Hit Steve Smith on a post route in Carolina and laid on the ground--again.

Stupid move? Of course, now, looking back on it. Being retired makes you think that way. But, for current players, taking the proper course of action after a head injury, and after a game like Cutler had Sunday night in the loss to the Giants is the smart move—and the only move the Bears should make this Sunday.

Todd Collins will take over the Bears’ huddle and the game plan on Sunday. That’s fine, no different than stepping in for a player who can’t go because of a knee, and ankle or a shoulder. We have to understand that.

With concussions, you have to sit the player down. Just like Andy Reid did with Kevin Kolb. Unlike that knee or ankle, you can’t fix your head. There is no treatment, no medicine, just time to wait. I do see Cutler as one of the toughest players at the position in the NFL. But, those hits add up. You need that QB for the rest of the season and into the future.

And that is exactly what the Bears are doing with their franchise QB.

While will still be up to the Doctor's, be real suprised if jay is not back by next week for Seattle, esp at home

Originally Posted by draw2anderson35

I've had this game circled on the sked for awhile now since I'm gonna be at Soldier Field for it... so I hope Cutler starts this game!

and hopefully for you its like the last time seattle came to the windy city during the season..34-7 : ) hopr ya have a great time!

Ok.. will even take the playoffs 27-24 "W"...

Originally Posted by draw2anderson35

As long as its a "W" it will be a great time had by all!

Hope you are getting there early for a good tailgate

And yeah is amazing how the walk after the game is different with a "W"

Jim miller had a good breakdown on what the League does now for Concussions now, had not heard they had insitituted a "baseline" for Players as came into league, so Dr's can compare, its a great first step- and takes the decsion away from the team/players and into a Objective decision- not sure what % they are doing for the vet's, but if I was a player i'd want a "baseline" line also.. but good all players will have it going forward

How It Works

You have a baseline test in the NFL for concussions. This was the first year all rookies were given the "Impact Test" in Indianapolis at the annual NFL combine. It enables teams to now chart players trough their career. Recently, numerous former players have suffered from dementia at an early age and thus, the NFL had to react and become more proactive dealing with concussions. Jay Cutler just becomes the most recent statistic of teams not wanting to put a player at risk. At this point, risk would be an understatement when evaluating the Bear's pass protection. Although Jay has not missed a start in 5 years, he has a baseline test from Denver and most likely, the Bears followed up when Jay arrived in Chicago administering one of their own. It is a series of tests to check recall/memory. Team doctors and trainers make you recite a list of words starting with the letters A, B, C, etc...they are then able to check volume of words and differences from your initial list provided from earlier testing. Either Jay did not score well on the test or the doctors ruled him out altogether for their own self preservation. I lean towards the latter as Jay participated in practice on Wednesday. The track record on diagnosed injuries has been less than stellar from the Bears organization and should provide GM Jerry Angelo the ammunition to shake up another department this off-season. If the decision was up to Jay, he would be lining up under center against Carolina this weekend.

http://www.csnchicago.com/10/08/10/1...675&feedID=626