LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Bears QB Jay Cutler said he was cleared to play by doctors on Monday and he's expected to start Sunday vs. the Seahawks after missing a start for the first time in his career last week because of a concussion.

"I've been banged up before and still gone out and played, but your head and your brain — that's totally different, so once you start getting into that element, you kind of have to take a step back," Cutler said Wednesday.

Cutler still isn't sure when he suffered the concussion vs. the Giants, but he said he wanted to play the next week against Carolina. He was not medically cleared, though.

"I wanted to play," he said. "Concussions are very tricky. You're never really for sure when you're going to be 100 percent healthy, but talking with the trainers and medical staff and Lovie, of course, everyone just thought it would better if I waited."

While the concussion left him feeling woozy after being sacked nine times by the Giants, Cutler said he doesn't plan to slide more often to avoid hits or become more cautious on the field in the future.

"I can't change the way I play," he said.

Cutler's teammates seemed excited to have him back.

"He's our leader," C Olin Kreutz said. "He's our guy. He's an elite quarterback. It means everything to us."