Jay Cutler coming back for Chicago Bears: good news or bad?

It sure appears the Jay Cutler era — or error — in Chicago is coming to an end. The overpaid, underachieving quarterback’s fan club has seemingly dwindled to one member.

Cutler is his own biggest fan.

Bears coach John Fox is out of the club. According to reports last week, Fox told friends he’s “done” with Cutler. Fox later denied that. Still, patience with Fox is wearing thin outside his circle of friends. In his second year in Chicago, Fox is stuck with a 7-16 record that includes a mark of 2-9 at Soldier Field.

There’s more bad news for the Bears — the Cleveland Browns are not coming to town anytime soon. The Minnesota Vikings, 5-1 and leaders of the NFC North, are arriving Monday night with the NFL’s No. 1-ranked defense.

“Cutler coming back against the Minnesota defense is no picnic,” Sunset Station sports book director Chuck Esposito said. “He might get sacked double-digit times.”

Esposito is a Bears fan from Chicago. He still has the Cubs to root for in the World Series, at least.

“I’m going to be rooting for the Bears,” he said, laughing, “because that’s who we’re going to need.”

As could be expected, the betting public is backing the Vikings, who are favored between 4½ and 5½ points.

“If we escape the Minnesota game, it will be an excellent weekend,” South Point oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro said. “I don’t think we’ve taken the first bet on the Bears yet.”

There is a case to be made for the Bears. When a point spread is involved, there’s always a case that can be made for both sides. Here’s the case for the underdog:

The Vikings are playing back-to-back road games, following a mistake-riddled performance in a loss at Philadelphia last week; Sam Bradford is coming off his worst start as Minnesota’s quarterback, and his confidence is fragile; the Chicago defense has played better in recent weeks; the Bears had a 10-day break between games; and, Cutler is returning from a five-week injury absence with a lot to prove.

“The Bears are getting Cutler back, and on the surface it doesn’t sound like a big deal,” Esposito said. “Even if the relationship is ice cold with the Bears and Fox and Cutler, Cutler is still auditioning for other teams. He’s probably still a better option to put points on the board.”

Cutler is capable of a big game every now and then. But it would be a blind guess to say it will happen now.

He was more dangerous before the Bears parted ways with running back Matt Forte, wide receiver Brandon Marshall and tight end Martellus Bennett. Cutler is not to blame for all of the team’s problems. Chicago’s front-office moves created this fiasco.

The bottom line is it’s tough to bet on the Bears, who are 1-6 against the spread and bring the league’s lowest-scoring offense at 15.9 points per game.

Picks: Vikings -4½ and under 40½

Contact sports betting reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow on Twitter: @mattyoumans247