Long: Bears fans much less scary than Raiders fans
Offensive tackle Kyle Long's dad, Hall of Fame defensive end Howie, played his entire 13-year career with the Raiders, so Kyle was asked to compare the Bears' fan base to the Raiders'.
"Bears fans are awesome," Kyle Long said. "I just don't feel if I had a wife or a girlfriend I could (say), 'I'll just put you in the stands by yourself (at a Raiders game).' If you're going into The Black Hole (an especially rowdy section at Raiders home games), I don't think you'd be sending your significant other or your children there to watch the game.
"I know my dad would have people watching my mom, making sure she was OK at the Raiders game. It's a raucous group. They've got spikes on their shoulder pads. Those guys are crazy."
Sunday's game is at Soldier Field.
As a youngster, Long had access to plenty of Raiders gear, but he was more of a baseball fan back then.
"I know there was a lot of Raiders stuff in my house," he said. "We were given freedom to choose, I guess. I didn't really like football until I was 15 or 16. I became a Rams fan I'd say before anything else because of Chris."
Kyle's older brother Chris is in his eighth season as a Rams defensive end. His younger brother, Howie Jr., is a scout with the Raiders.
"Obviously Silver and Black is something that's been part of my upbringing, and I'm very proud of the things that my dad did with that organization," Kyle said. "My younger brother is working there in scouting, so I'm he'll be following (Raiders coach) Jack Del Rio around the sideline I'm sure. I'll get a chance to see him this week."
Learning from mistakes: Jay Cutler has 2 TD passes and 2 interceptions and, as often happens, the interceptions are more noteworthy.
Against the Packers, Clay Matthews picked off Cutler and returned 42 yards to help transform a 24-16 Green Bay lead into a 31-16 advantage. In Week Two, the Cardinals' Tony Jefferson went 26 yards for a TD after intercepting Cutler, who suffered a strained hamstring trying to make a tackle.
"You'd love any quarterback to be flawless," Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase said. "But you have to be realistic. The first one was totally on me, and the second one we had a miscommunication between (Cutler and tight end Martellus Bennett), which I feel like we got cleaned up.
"You can't look at every little play and be worried about every little mistake we made. That's why it's a 60-minute game. That's why there are 16 games. You've got to keep plugging along. You've got to keep trying to get better. I feel like that's what he's doing. If we hang on every little tiny error we make, we're not going to get better."
Health beat:
Defensive linemen Ego Ferguson (knee), Jeremiah Ratliff (ankle) and Will Sutton (elbow), cornerback Alan Ball (groin) and punter Patrick O'Donnell (knee) were all limited Thursday, in addition to Jay Cutler and Alshon Jeffery.
Offensive left tackle Jermon Bushrod (concussion/shoulder) did not practice.
If Bushrod is out Sunday, 2014 seventh-round pick Charles Leno is the expected starter.
"All these guys know they are one play away from being the starter," coach John Fox said. "It doesn't matter which position you're talking about. That's why you keep 53 men. You have 46 in uniform on Sundays. We'll address that as the week wears on."