Much of the criticism of Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler might have been avoided if the team had gotten the word out about his injury sooner, said former Bears safety Gary Fencik.
Several NFL players weighed in on Twitter questioning whether Cutler was too hurt to play. He was shown standing on the sideline, prompting many to believe that he might not have been hurt that badly.
The Bears announced on Monday that Cutler suffered an MCL sprain in his left knee.
Fencik believes much of the public relations hits Cutler is taking could have been avoided with a quicker response by the Bears.
"I think the reality is that today Twitter and Facebook and all the social media, you have to address that if you are an organization," Fencik said Wednesday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I think the Bears were well behind that, and I think they could have put this to rest if they had either put something on the [Jumbotron] at the field -- I was at the game and had no idea what the extent of the injury was -- or immediately addressed it after the game, which they didn't do.
"It left the social media and not necessarily the press but former players who have credibility all of a sudden driving the story. I feel bad for Jay Cutler, but I think it just has something to do with his body language and the way he looks on TV. You're not supposed to be pandering to the crowd; when you're on the field you're trying to win the game, but I think it's kind of a culmination of that. I think it's very unfortunate."