Hoge's Notes: Bears To Stick With Two Quarterbacks As Palmer Joins Team
By Adam Hoge-
HALAS HALL (CBS) -- Both head coach Marc Trestman and general manager Phil Emery confirmed Monday that Jordan Palmer will join the Bears as the team's backup quarterback and that the team is content with just two quarterbacks for now.
"We'll go that route again. We'll play the analytics there and go that route again to try to free up another player that can help us in some phase of our football," Trestman said.
An MRI Monday morning confirmed starting quarterback Jay Cutler tore a muscle in his groin and he will miss at least four weeks.
Josh McCown will take over as the team's starter and the Bears are optimistic there won't be much of a drop off offensively after McCown posted a quarterback rating of 119.6 against the Redskins Sunday.
Palmer spent two weeks with the Bears during the preseason and started the team's final preseason game against the Browns. He played well in that game despite being forced to learn the offense on short notice, but the Bears still cut him because they felt keeping only two quarterbacks was better for the overall roster.
"He impressed us," Trestman said. "He was very efficient running the offense when he was in there on very short notice. So that's where we'll start. We feel good that he's available and we can bring him in to back up Josh."
Other Roster Moves
- To make room for Palmer, Emery confirmed the Bears released tight end Steve Maneri, who was inactive the last three weeks. Maneri signed a two-year, $1.55 million contract with the team over the offseason.
- Maneri's release could mean Fendi Onobun will get promoted to the active roster, but Emery would not confirm that yet, saying it will depend on what they do at linebacker, where Lance Briggs was lost for "about six weeks."
- The Bears also released practice squad wide receiver Ricardo Lockette Monday.
Injury Updates
- X-rays on Brandon Marshall's wrist were negative.
- Charles Tillman is still dealing with the same inflammation in his knee that has plagued him all season. Tillman left Sunday's game against the Redskins in the fourth quarter and according to Emery, the cornerback made the decision not to return to the game. The GM added that they trust Tillman when it comes to the injury and are going to continue to listen to him.
Adam Hoge covers the Bears for CBSChicago.com and is a frequent contributor to 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter at @AdamHoge.
