Bears bring on another quarterback

One thing certain about Chicago Bears starting quarterback Jay Cutler is his reputation for getting hurt from time to time.

While some fans will tell you Cutler’s injuries are a result of his passion and love for the game which lead to him going all out and trying to do too much, others will tell you he will miss two weeks over a hangnail. Regardless of the reason, his past injuries have put the Bears through some difficult times due to a lack of a reliable backup.

Chicago has put some effort into addressing this matter during the off-season. Along with signing veteran Brian Hoyer to a one year contract after the NFL draft, the Bears claimed Connor Shaw Friday, the day after he was waived by the Cleveland Browns.

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This will be Connor’s third season in the NFL after signing with the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent in 2013. He spent the majority of his rookie season with the Cleveland practice squad before getting his first start in the season finale. In the loss to Baltimore, Hoyer completed 14 of 28 passes for 177 yards, with a QB rating of 55.2.

Hoyer missed the entire 2015 season due to a thumb injury he received on August 13 during a preseason game against the Washington Redskins. Dowell Loggains, who is now the Bears offensive coordinator was Shaw’s Quarterback coach in 2014 while he was in Cleveland.

Throughout his college career at the University of South Carolina, Shaw completed over 65 percent of his passes, throwing the ball for over 6,000 yards. He found the end zone 56 times whiles throwing only 16 interceptions. While at South Carolina, Shaw spent two years tossing the ball to Alshon Jeffery, who is now the Chicago Bear’s top receiver.

Shaw makes the 5th quarterback on the Bears roster. While Cutler is definitely the starter, this makes for a solid competition at the backup spot, a luxury Chicago hasn’t seen for a while. Although Chicago fans hope the position will not be of importance, it will be a huge boost of confidence knowing if a second quarterback is needed, someone will be ready to go.

Along with Hoyer and Shaw, David Fales is looking for an opportunity to make his presence known in his second year in the league, as is undrafted rookie Dalyn Williams.

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