Cutler: "I don't know if we're going to exactly cut back on anything"

If the Bears are going to cut back the offensive playbook for Sunday’s game vs. the Arizona Cardinals, we’ll have to wait until after practice to get that word from offensive coordinator Ron Turner.

It was Turner, visibly upset with a lousy offensive showing following the 30-6 victory over the Cleveland Browns, who suggested that could be coming. The Bears rushed for 170 yards in the game but only because Garrett Wolfe scampered 36 yards down the left sideline in garbage time, and it was still short of the average being allowed by the last-ranked Browns defense.

The Bears were a woeful 2-for-7 in the red zone, although you can eliminate one of the opportunities as it came after Wolfe’s long run.

“I don’t know if we’re going to exactly cut back on anything,” Cutler said before practice, which will be starting momentarily. “We’ve just got to execute better. The guys know the plays. They know what they’re supposed to do. We’ve just got to do it.”

The red zone remains a hot topic as the Bears are now tied for 25th, struggle that has prevented them from being one of the top scoring teams in the league because they’re ranked seventh in red zone opportunities.

“We could do a lot of things better [in the red zone],” Cutler said. “The players, we’ve got to execute, we’ve got to draw some stuff up and maybe attack them in a different way. But we’re doing good stuff. We’re having opportunities down there.

“We’ve busted on a few red zone opportunities. That’s all on the players. We’re getting our chances. Everyone knows. We have to take advantage of it. Right now we’re just not doing it. Earlier in the season we were a lot better.”

One idea would be to start throwing the ball into the end zone. The Bears have been hesitant to push the ball into the end zone with the exception of the short passes they have thrown right at the goalline. Complete that pass and, you got it, it’s a touchdown.

Whatever happens, though, don’t expect major changes.

“We’re kind of in the middle of the season. We’ve got our base plays, we’ve got our concepts that we like,” Cutler said. “It’s just a matter of us running those. Each week we’re going to have some different wrinkles and stuff. But the offense is what the offense is.”

We’ll see what Turner says the offense is going to be after practice. Stay tuned.