Fox says Cutler's 'done a tremendous job'

Jay Cutler's 95.3 passer rating is 10 points higher than his cumulative mark over his seven Bears season and almost 6.1 points higher than any of his previous nine NFL seasons.

Coach John Fox has observed some noticeable growth in just the few months they've worked together.

"I've seen him grow. I've seen him be all-in from when we first came here in the off-season," Fox said. "He's done a tremendous job. I've never seen a guy work quite that hard. Buying into something and learning it ... it takes countless hours.

"It's not just practice time or off-season conditioning time. He put a lot of extra time into it, and it's always good to see people that worked really hard improve and reap the rewards of it."

Cutler started his career in Denver and played there for three years (2006-08), but he says there's no added significance to Sunday's game against the Broncos.

"I've thought about it, and there isn't," Cutler said. "It's so far removed. Coaching staff has changed. The only player that was on the team is (offensive tackle) Ryan Clady. So many things have changed since then."

Player to watch:

Broncos sack leader DeMarcus Ware appears doubtful Sunday because of a back injury. But Von Miller, whose 5 sacks are just 1 1/2 less than Ware, is also a player the Bears must account for.

"He's a tremendous talent," said Bears coach John Fox, who was Miller's coach his first four years in the league. "As a pass-rusher, he has great first-step explosion. He can convert speed to power. You better know where he is on the field at all times."

When both outside linebackers are on the field, the Broncos have the NFL's best pass rush. The 33-year-old Ware has 133 1/2 career sacks, including 10 last season, his first in Denver. It was Ware's eighth double-digit sack total in the previous nine seasons.

Miller had 14 sacks last season and 18 1/2 in 2012, his second year in the league.

The Broncos' defense is No. 1 in the NFL in yards allowed and No. 3 in points allowed.

"He's improved," Fox said of Miller. "They're playing really good defense, the best that's being played in the league right now, statistically speaking, and he's a big part of that."

Back in a flash:

Not only did Shea McClellin lead the Bears with 9 tackles and force and recover a fumble against the Rams last week, he did it just four weeks after suffering a sprained knee.

"Shea did well," defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. "Shea's a stud. That was a 4-6-week injury, and he came back right on the four-week mark. A lot of time guys are at the six- or seven-week mark, and he came right back as early as he could, went out there and played good and made his presence felt early with a big strip fumble."

Injury report:

Linebacker Pernell McPhee (knee), running back Matt Forte (knee) and wide receivers Eddie Royal (knee) and Alshon Jeffery (groin/shoulder) did not practice.

Linebacker Shea McClellin (knee), safety Antrel Rolle (ankle) and center Hroniss Grasu (neck) were limited.