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LAKE FOREST, Ill. - The Chicago Bears benched Jay Cutler on Thursday, deciding to start Jimmy Clausen against this Detroit Lions this weekend in favour of their franchise quarterback who signed a massive, seven-year deal less than a year ago. Coach Marc Trestman said Cutler will be available as the backup for Sundays game at Soldier Field, where boos have rained down on a punchless, porous team that is now 5-9 and playing out the string after starting the season with legitimate hopes of a deep playoff run. They will miss the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons. Trestman said it was certainly not an easy decision and Cutler was certainly taken aback. Shocked, I think at first, Cutler said of his reaction. Asked if he believed the team was committed to him, Cutler added: I dont know if I can answer that. Everyone would wonder that, he said. The move fuels the idea that the Bears are in a state of dysfunction and that the future of everyone from general manager Phil Emery on down is open to discussion. There has been plenty of speculation about Trestman, now in his second year, not to mention defensive co-ordinator Mel Tucker and offensive co-ordinator Aaron Kromer. Cutlers future is also in question despite the new contract. I would like to stay here, he said, adding that he would be able to play again next year for Trestman if things went that way, though we would have to figure some things out in the off-season. Cutler leads the league in interceptions (18) and turnovers (24) and he was benched after arguably his worst game of the season in Mondays loss to New Orleans. He threw three interceptions and got sacked a season-high seven times as the Bears fell meekly at home to the Saints, 31-15. That performance came after Cutler found himself at the centre of a storm last week, after Kromer admitted he was a source behind a report by the NFL Network criticizing the quarterbacks ability to identify when plays should be changed at the line. That might have sealed Kromers fate. But there could be a long list of personnel taking the fall. The defence has ranked among the leagues worst in two years with Tucker, and the offence has taken a big step back in Year 2 under Trestman. Then, theres Emery, who fired Lovie Smith after a 10-win season in 2012 and chose Trestman over Bruce Arians, how rolling with the Cardinals. He also signed Cutler to that seven-year contract at the end of last season when the Bears could have applied the franchise tag instead. Even so, the timing of the benching seems curious considering the Bears are out of contention. Trestman, who came with a reputation for getting the most out of quarterbacks, acknowledged this week that has not happened with Cutler. So the Bears are going with Clausen, the former Notre Dame star. He has appeared in three games this season and attempted nine passes, completing three. He was 1-9 in 10 starts as a rookie with Carolina in 2010 and threw for 1,558 yards that year. Carolina then drafted Cam Newton. The Bears signed Clausen in June, and he beat out Jordan Palmer for the backup job. ___ Online: AP NFL websites: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Cheap Swell .C. - The Panthers will be without starting defensive tackle Star Lotulelei for Saturday nights NFC divisional playoff game against Seattle after undergoing surgery Wednesday to repair a broken bone in his foot. Swell Liberty Water Bottle . Judging by his performance Saturday night, Cotto has plenty left in the tank. Cotto became the first Puerto Rican fighter to win world championships in four weight divisions, stopping Sergio Martinez in their WBC world middleweight title fight Saturday night. http://www.swellbottleuk.com/ . 25 against Miami. Hillis left Browns Stadium about two hours before kickoff, a decision that has led to speculation he was upset over ongoing negotiations with the club on a contract extension. S Well Teakwood Drinking Bottle . Snedekers best result so far this year is a tie for eighth place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He sits 113th in FedEx Cup standings and has dropped to 31st in world rankings — not the results expected from a player ranked fourth in the world only two years ago. Swell Bottle Sale 17 Oz . The win gives Canada its fifth title at the World Sledge Hockey Challenge. "Weve got to keep pushing," said Westlake, who led Canada with five goals in the tournament. "The second you let off the pedal, everyone catches up.LONDON - Max Verstappen is set to become the youngest ever driver in Formula One after Toro Rosso announced that the 16-year-old Dutchman will join the team next season. Verstappen has been racing in the Formula 3 European Championship this year, winning eight of 27 races, and joined the Red Bull Junior Team this month. Toro Rosso, the sister team of Red Bull, said Monday that Verstappen will race alongside Daniil Kvyat in 2015, replacing Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne. "Ever since I was 7 years old, Formula 1 has been my career goal, so this opportunity is truly a dream come true," Verstappen said in a statement. The teenager, who will turn 17 next month, is the son of former F1 driver Jos Verstappen. He would shatter the record for the youngest person to drive in F1, with Jaime AAlguersuari holding the current mark of 19 years, 125 days.dddddddddddd. The 20-year-old Kvyat is the youngest driver on this years F1 grid. "We consider Max to be one of the most skilled young drivers of the new generation and we believe he has the necessary maturity and mental strength to take on this challenge successfully," Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost said. "This year he has already demonstrated how well he can cope under difficult conditions. ... Bearing in mind that Scuderia Toro Rosso was created with the aim of bringing young talent from the Red Bull Junior Team into Formula 1 and to educate them, it will now be up to us to provide Max with a competitive car, which will enable him to have the best possible start to his Formula 1 career." ' ' '