Jay Cutler Injury: 5 Reasons Why the Bears Will Still Make the Playoffs

The collective gasping of air you heard this morning was from thousands of Chicago Bears fans when they heard Jay Cutler has a broken thumb and is likely out for the remainder of the season.

Although Cutler is one of the better QBs in the league and makes the Bears a really good team, the Bears are more than equipped to make a playoff run even with No. 6 under center.

The offense can still keep moving the ball, and the defense has stepped up dramatically in their winning streak. Look for the good times to keep rolling in Chicago.

Also, be sure to check out some other great pieces by Kyle.

5. The Remaining Schedule Is Favorable

Looking at the remaining schedule, the Bears have some favorable games upcoming.

Next week's game against the Oakland Raiders is likely to be their toughest outside of a rematch with the Green Bay Packers. Other than those two games, the Bears play against the Chiefs, Broncos, Seahawks and Vikings to close out the season.

All of those games, outside of the matchups against the Raiders and Packers, are very winnable for the Bears.

The Chiefs have been up and down all season and are suffering from the injury bug big time. The Broncos offense has struggled besides Tim Tebow, and even though he has "it," he only has it in the fourth quarter.

The Seahawks have proven to be a pesky thorn in the side for many playoff teams, but the Bears do play them at home. And the season finale against the Vikings will be against a rookie QB, and the health of Adrian Peterson is still uncertain.

4. Bears Have Gone Through This Before

In 2005, starter Rex Grossman was injured for the season, and backup Kyle Orton was forced to take over for the majority of the regular season.

Orton would go on to win 15 games, and the Bears made the playoffs. Grossman returned in time for the playoffs, and the team transitioned back to Grossman being the starter.

The Bears have had to deal with erratic QB play for a while and have dealt with backup QBs needing to come into the game. The organization knows how to best handle the situation and put the team in the best position to win.

3. Mike Martz Will Make the Offense Simple

When Mike Martz came under a lot of scrutiny earlier in the season, the offensive coordinator swallowed his pride and chose to feature Matt Forte instead of attempting to recreate "The Greatest Show on Turf."

Now with an inexperienced Caleb Hainie starting, look for Martz to simplify his offense to help Hainie out. We won't see a lot of down the field looks, as Hainie will likely struggle with reading coverages and get happy feet in the pocket.

All Hainie needs to do is hand the ball to Forte and get the ball to Devin Hester in space. If he does need to pass down the field, Earl Bennett has emerged as a solid No. 1 receiver for the Bears.

2. Matt Forte

Even though Jay Cutler is the biggest name on the offensive side of the ball, Matt Forte is the centerpiece.

Forte has been a one-man wrecking crew this season by factoring into virtually every offensive statistic category but passing.

Since their loss against the Detroit Lions earlier this year, the Bears have made a choice to focus on running the football with Forte. It has paid off huge for the Bears, as Forte has been putting up big numbers every week.

A bad QBs best friend is a good running game, and Caleb Hainie will not have any problem giving the ball to Forte 20-30 times a game.

1. The Bears Defense

As good as Matt Forte has been this year, the Bears defense has been that much better.

It's a unit that's loaded with star power at every level.

Julius Peppers is one of the best defensive ends in the game, Brian Urlacher can still make the big plays and Lance Briggs continues to put up solid numbers without a contract. Charles Tillman is one of the best at causing a turnover.

As long as the Bears defense can still force turnovers and keep opposing offenses out of the end-zone, the Bears will have an opportunity to win every game on the remainder of their schedule.