The attention surrounding Jay Cutler in the aftermath of Chicago’s loss Sunday distracted us from a few questionable decisions from Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz, from his playcalling late in the game to his handling of his backup quarterbacks.
We at least may have an explanation for why Todd Collins left the game when he did. NFL Network’s Albert Breer reports that Collins suffered a “significant” shoulder injury in the game. Collins has an MRI Tuesday to determine if he needs surgery.
This will probably mark the end of Collins’ 16-year career. He threw five interceptions and no touchdowns in the regular season, which made a lot of folks wonder why he was ahead of Caleb Hanie on the depth chart in the first place.
In the end, the injuries to the Bears quarterbacks actually worked in favor of Chicago. The way Cutler was playing, we don’t think he could have led them on a comeback like Hanie. The same goes for Collins.
UPDATE: Breer is backing off his original report. He says Collins checked out fine on his exit physical and didn’t require an MRI. It was reportedly a coach’s decision to take him out of the game in favor of Caleb Hanie.