So much for the Brian Hoyer Hype Train. After stuffing the stat sheet in every category but points scored, the journeyman quarterback who started five games for the Bears in place of injured Jay Cutler is now injured himself.
Hoyer left Thursday's contest against the Packers with an injury to his non-throwing arm. He'll have surgery Sunday and is expected to miss eight weeks, according to ESPN.com's Adam Caplan, which means Hoyer's 2016 season could be over.
Matt Barkley finished the game in Hoyer's absence, but he was just 6 of 15 for 81 yards, including two interceptions.
"You want to say it's tough, but I don't like to think of that, because that's making an excuse," Barkley said after the Bears lost to the Packers 26-10. "I felt prepared coming into this game, especially on paper knowing what we were doing, Xs-and-Os-wise. I told them not to hold back anything with the game plan when I went in and I think they held true to that."
The 1-6 Bears' season is effectively over, but there's still the matter of when Cutler, who suffered a thumb injury in Week 2, will be healthy enough to return to the lineup. Ideally, he'll be ready for the Week 8 get-together with the Vikings but coach John Fox was noncommittal on the matter.
"We're waiting on the medical people," Fox said. "When he's cleared medically, we'll have him out there. When exactly that's going to be, I can't answer that. But he's getting closer."
In the meantime, this is Barkley's team by default, though with Hoyer out and Cutler's situation unclear, the Bears will almost certainly have to sign another quarterback to the active roster.
