No beef between Chicago Bears' McPhee, Cutler

Injured linebacker Pernell McPhee was captured by cameras as he got in Jay Cutler's face after the quarterback's interception Monday night, but the incident was downplayed by the Bears.

"I have not seen it," coach John Fox said. "I wasn't aware of it (Monday) night. We've got a short week. I haven't had all this time to go back and look at TV copies and whatnot.

"You're going to have conversations. These guys are competitive; they're going to hold each other accountable. You're going to have - not confrontations - but conversations. That's always been the case on any football team I've ever been around."

Cutler was more concerned late Monday night with the 29-14 loss than the nature of the "conversation."

"I'm fine with that," he said. "He's a passionate guy. Everyone has a lot invested into this, and he does as well. No one likes to lose. No one likes to lose in that fashion. He's upset. I'm upset. Everyone in that locker room is upset."

It's unusual, however, for a player who has done next to nothing in the past 10 months and is on the physically-unable-to-perform list to berate a teammate trying to play through an injury.

No conspiracy theory:

Coach John Fox sought to quash reports that quarterback Jay Cutler first injured his thumb in the season opener against the Texans.

"Jay probably originally hurt his thumb five years ago," Fox said, alluding to Cutler's 2011 thumb injury, which required surgery. "He practiced every play of practice last week. It didn't appear to (be an issue). I'm not a doctor. I just listen to the medical people."

Fox was asked if Monday night's game plan took Cutler's thumb into account.

"None whatsoever," Fox said, "because it wasn't a factor."

Running on empty:

Only six teams are averaging fewer rushing yards per game than the Bears' 68.5.

"You always want more and better and all that," coach John Fox said. "(But) if you look at (yards) per rush, it's not that bad."

The Bears' 3.6 yards per rush ranks 19th, well below last year's 4.1 NFL average. Second-half deficits have curtailed the commitment to the ground game, Fox said.

"We've been in two games where we've been trailing, and your run numbers usually drop," he said. "Our rush totals have been lower because we've fallen behind in the second half."

Despite a close first half Monday night, the Bears rushed just seven times for 10 yards, a 1.4-yard average. They led 14-10 at halftime in Week One and had 38 yards on 11 carries in the first half.

Rays of sunshine:

Despite appearances to the contrary, there have been some positive developments in an otherwise disappointing start, most notably wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Eddie Royal.

Jeffery has 9 catches for 201 yards, including receptions of 54 and 49 yards and a 22.3-yard average per catch. Royal has 8 catches for 109 yards and his 13.6-yard average is more than double last year's uncharacteristic 6.4 average.

Royal also has provided a huge boost in the punt-return game with 105 yards on 5 attempts, including Monday night's 65-yard TD, for a 21.0-yard average. Last year's primary punt returner, Marc Mariani, averaged 6.6 yards on punt returns.

Personnel move:

Fullback Paul Lasike, whose only carry this season was for 2 yards Monday night, was released.

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