Jay Cutler Goes Under The Knife, Will Begin Thumb Rehab In Next Few Days

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler went under the knife on Wednesday to fix his fractured right thumb and the Bears announced on Twitter that he’ll be able to begin rehab in the next few days.

The surgery took place in Vail, Colorado and following the procedure head coach Lovie Smith said his QB could return before the end of the season.

“The plan is to get him back at the latter part of the regular season,” Smith told reporters. “This is what I wanted to know, ‘Was it a season-ending injury?’ No. From what I’ve been told right now, we can expect him back at the end of the regular season. For me, that’s enough to go on.”

Cutler’s injury came as the last 10 minutes of play winded down during Sunday’s 31-20 victory over the San Diego Chargers, after throwing an interception Cutler made a tackle and injured his hand in the process. Despite breaking his thumb Cutler finished out the game with two final passes for 24 yards.

Replacing Cutler for Sunday’s upcoming match against the Oakland Raiders will be Cutler’s backup QB Caleb Hanie. Speaking about Cutler’s injury Caleb revealed:

“I reached out to him (on Tuesday), and just asked about his surgery and all that stuff to see if he’s OK,” and “He’s all good. He’s in good spirits.

“As any athlete who gets injured, it’s a bummer at the time but he’ll be back quick. I’m confident in it.”

Backing up Hanie will be Josh McCown who the Chicago Bears signed on Wednesday.

Do you think the Chicago Bears can continue to win games with Hanie replacing Cutler? If the club continues to focus on their running game and use Hanie sparingly all may not be lost for the season.