Jay Cutler Injury: Chicago Bears Troubled QB Set to Be the Scapegoat Once Again

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler broke the thumb on his throwing hand on Sunday against the San Diego Chargers, and he may miss the rest of the regular season because of it.

I can already hear the boo birds now.

Cutler was widely criticized last season for sitting out the second half the NFC Championship Game after sustaining a second-degree sprain of his MCL.

Never mind that playing through the injury would have been near impossible, or beneficial to his team.

Now he's poised to be criticized for being the sole reason the Bears potentially don't make the playoffs.

Never mind that he's had a solid season, entering Sunday's game with just six interceptions on the season and leading the 7-3 Bears to a 31-20 victory.

People are going to instantly start comparing him to Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford; I can see it now. Stafford has played two games with a fractured right finger.

But the difference is Cutler's injury is an entirely different kind of injury, one that will force him to undergo surgery.

The Bears have won their last five games because Cutler has been so careful with the ball, something that has dogged him throughout his career. In that five-game span, he's thrown seven touchdowns to three interceptions, playing within the game and helping his rebounding defense in the process.

But now, after apparently growing as a quarterback this season, he's set to be once again thrown under the bus, the scapegoat if the Bears don't make the postseason.

At some point you have to say enough is enough.

Cutler may rub some people the wrong way personally, but we've got to stop blasting him when he doesn't deserve it.

I'm hoping people have loosened up since the NFC Championship Game, but I doubt that's going to be the case.

Once again, Cutler will be criticized for getting injured.

Doesn't that seem just a little wrong?