Loss to Arizona a real bad look for Chicago Bears

An otherwise exquisite afternoon on the lakefront was tarnished by an ugly and demoralizing Bears loss to the Arizona Cardinals at Soldier Field, a loss uncomfortably reminiscent of last year's 5-11 train wreck of a season.

The 48-23 defeat established a franchise record for most points allowed at home. It left the Bears at 0-2 and headed to Seattle to face the powerhouse Seahawks with the health of starting quarterback Jay Cutler very much in doubt.

Cutler suffered a hamstring injury of undetermined severity on the only pass he didn't complete. He came up lame after pursuing Arizona safety Tony Jefferson, who sprinted 26 yards for a pick-6 that gave the Cardinals (2-0) a 28-14 lead with 2:59 left in the half.

Aside from the turning-point interception, his second in as many weeks, Cutler completed his other 8 passes for 120 yards, including a 48-yard TD toss to Josh Bellamy for a 116.2 passer rating, his highest since Week 2 of last season.

Jimmy Clausen replaced Cutler and appeared horribly out of rhythm, especially early, which was unfortunate since the Bears began possessions at the Cardinals' 22- and 12-yard lines in the final 75 seconds of the half.

Touchdowns on both possessions would have produced a 28-28 tie at the break. But each time the Bears settled for field goals that left them with a 28-20 halftime deficit, as the red-zone shortcomings of the season opener continued.

Still, the Bears were in decent shape considering they allowed a 108-yard kickoff-return touchdown to start the game.

But with Clausen and the offense struggling to get in sync, the game was essentially over after the Cardinals scored touchdowns on their first two possessions of the third quarter.

"Any time you put a quarterback in the game who has had backup reps (hardly any) during the week, it's tough," coach John Fox said. "He did the best he could, and that's all you can ask for as a coach."

Clausen's 56.6 passer rating Sunday won't be good enough for the Bears when they travel to Seattle to face the Seahawks next Sunday.

"It's pretty tough (coming in cold), but that's my job," said Clausen, whose 48 passes last year were his first in an NFL game since 2010. "As a backup quarterback, you've got to be ready when your name is called when the starter goes down. That's the nature of the job."

Going back to last season, the Bears have lost seven in a row and 10 of their last 12. Their franchise-record-tying 170 penalty yards (on 14 infractions) Sunday added to the malaise of fans, many of whom vacated their seats before the fourth quarter began.

So did the second straight game without a sack from the rebuilt defense and its high-priced pass rushers. There also were numerous failures in the secondary, which, when it wasn't being flagged for pass interference, was allowing 4 TD passes.

Pass-interference penalties on cornerbacks Kyle Fuller and Alan Ball, accounted for 42 and 38 yards, respectively and were the biggest plays on two of the Cardinals' first-half TD drives.

"Downfield penalties were a huge problem," Fox said. "It's something we need to improve, obviously."

Fuller, the 2014 first-round draft pick who was considered a building block for the future, was benched in favor Terrance Mitchell in the fourth quarter.

While the Cardinals converted all 4 of their red-zone opportunities to touchdowns, the Bears were 1-for-2, which didn't include when they got the ball at the Cardinals' 22 on Jacquizz Rodgers recovery of a muffed punt but failed to move. Clausen threw 3 straight incomplete passes. The first 2 were batted down at the line of scrimmage and the third was nowhere near Marquess Wilson.

"We have to take advantage of those opportunities," Fox said. "In an area of the field that's short, you have to execute even better. When you have your starting quarterback out and one of your starting receivers (Pro Bowler Alshon Jeffery) out, it makes it a little more difficult. It's not an excuse; it's just reality."

The reality is that the Bears already are in an 0-2 hole and facing a long road trip to the most hostile environment in the NFL.

Red-zone offense and defense, penalties, pass rush, coverage, special teams and injuries all are major concerns for the Bears, but Fox said morale won't be a problem.

"We get paid to do this," he said. "We get compensated pretty well. Almost everybody in there is classified as a professional, and that's what professionals do. They don't worry about morale. We get paid to win."