Michna recalls days with Bears' new coordinator

Rush quarterback Russ Michna knows what Bears quarterback Jay Cutler can expect from new offensive coordinator Mike Martz, a notorious taskmaster but also a keen offensive mind.

Michna had some advice for Cutler.

"All I can say is, 'Soak up everything Mr. Martz teaches you,' " said Michna, who was signed by the St. Louis Rams as an undrafted rookie out of Western Illinois in 2004 and spent time on the practice squad.

"He knows what he's doing. I'd be surprised if the Bears' offense isn't a lot more potent with him there. I learned more in two weeks under Mike Martz than I did in my whole career up to that point."

Failure to learn what Martz is teaching can have disastrous results. He is especially tough on quarterbacks.

"I don't think you'll meet a guy who would say differently," Michna said. "Some guys can take it and some guys can't.

"I definitely received some harsh words and was called some names. Did I deserve them? Probably. It's just that usually people aren't as open about calling you all those names in public."

Michna paused when was asked for an example of the names he was called during that first training camp back when the Rams did their preseason work at Western Illinois.

"None that you'd be able to print," he said with a laugh. "I don't even know if I could sugarcoat it enough to get it in the paper."

After some prodding and some laughter, Michna came up with some of his favorite Martz memories.

"I was definitely accused of soiling myself once," he said, "and I've been told I was many things that are the exact opposite of intelligent."

To call Martz a perfectionist still would be an understatement, according to Michna.

Martz's pet peeve?

"Lack of attention to detail," Michna said. "The first week we were there (in training camp) we were in a meeting and I was sitting next to a kid, another rookie, who had gotten reprimanded for aligning the wrong way. He was off by about a yard.

"The next day we were watching film and he was lined up wrong again, so Martz asked him where he should be lined up, and the kid said the right answer.

"Martz said, 'Then why weren't you lined up there? Get out of my meeting. I don't ever want to see you again.

"I don't know if there were other contributing factors, but he was gone."

Michna said he incurred Martz's wrath on more than one occasion but never to that extent.

"There were many drills that I got thrown out of, and I didn't get all that many reps to begin with," he said. "You're definitely going to have problems with him if everything, including the details, aren't important to you.

"Some guys don't respond well to his intensity or they're not used to it. They're not used to his passion."