Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has a strained hamstring, coach John Fox said Monday.
“I think any time it’s not real severe I think it’s good news,” Fox said at Halas Hall. “We’ll just evaluate it going forward, we have game-planning tonight for Seattle and tomorrow and players are back in on Wednesday.”
Fox said it was “yet to be determined” who will start Sunday against the Seahawks, but a source later Monday confirmed that Jimmy Clausen will start for the Bears on Sunday. Clausen took over for Cutler on Sunday and struggled, but Bears think he could fare better with a full week of practice.
Cutler was injured Sunday when he tried to tackle Cardinals safety Tony Jefferson, who returned his interception 26 yards for a touchdown. He was stiff-armed into the ground, landing on and rolling over his right shoulder, but the team said he did not experience at upper-body injury.
Fox said he couldn’t predict whether Cutler would practice on Wednesday — “Is it going to be heads or tails on Sunday? I don’t know,” he said — but wouldn’t list practicing as a pre-requisite to start.
Cutler received tests on the hamstring Monday and attended team meetings in Halas Hall.
Fox said the team has yet to decide whether to add another quarterback. The Bears could also promote David Fales from the practice squad.
Speaking generally, hamstring injuries are “usually a pretty debilitating thing for a quarterback” because it makes it harder to transfer energy from the abdominal area when throwing, said Pietro Tonino, program director of Sports Medicine at Loyola University Medical Center.
Recovery times vary. The doctor, who does not treat Cutler, said details described by the team sounded like a “week to week” injury.
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Email: pfinley@suntimes.com
