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LAKE FOREST, Ill. – The expectation was for Chicago Bears No. 2 running back Michael Bush to have a larger role in the offense during the club’s Week 4 game against the Detroit Lions.

However, the Bears sent Bush on the field for just two of the team’s 72 offensive snaps in their 40-32 loss to the Detroit Lions. In stark contrast, starting tailback Matt Forte played 71 of the 72 snaps and carried the ball 14 times for 95 yards and one touchdown. Forte also caught the ball five times for 22 yards.

The Bears signed Bush to a four-year, $14 million contract in the spring of 2012 to serve as Forte’s primary backup. Bush will earn a total of $2.550 million this season ($1.5 million base salary, $1 million roster bonus and $50,000 workout bonus), but has run the ball just 16 times for 24 yards in four games.

Bears coach Marc Trestman explained that Bush’s role was limited on Sunday because the Bears fell behind by 20 points in the first half.

“I think it was the kind of game it was more than anything,” Trestman said. “It was a two-minute drill more than anything else. We want Michael to be part of our football team and hope to get him in the mix during the course of the game. We have to grow in that area. We just have to find more ways to get him out there. It’s just difficult because we don’t want to take Matt off the field, either.”

Bush appeared in 13 games for the Bears last season, carrying the ball 114 times for 411 yards and five touchdowns. He rushed for a career-high 977 yards for the Oakland Raiders in 2011.

DETROIT -- Here are five things we learned in the Chicago Bears’ 40-32 loss to the Detroit Lions:

1. High turnover games remain a reality for Jay Cutler: Cutler deserves some credit for not calling it quits when the Lions led 40-16 late in the fourth-quarter, but his four turnovers were a major reason why the Bears lost. There isn’t a coach alive that can permanently eliminate these types of games from Cutler’s resume. When interceptions happen, they tend to happen in bunches with Cutler. That’s part of the package. It will never change. However, Cutler has been clutch for the Bears in three games this season, and certainly deserves the benefit of the doubt that he can bounce back with a stellar effort against the New Orleans Saints next Sunday. And I liked the fact Cutler and the offense kept fighting until the bitter end, even when the game was painfully out of reach. But the reality is that Cutler will always be a high-risk, high-reward quarterback, no matter the team, coach or system.

2. The defense has dropped a notch: The Bears still have a knack for forcing turnovers on defense, but Reggie Bush became the third opponent (A.J. Green and Antonio Brown) to have a monster game against the defense in the past four weeks. With the exception of Adrian Peterson's crazy game at Soldier Field in 2007, Sunday might have been the worst tackling display that I’ve seen from the Bears’ defense in recent memory. Bush is a talented multipurpose tailback, but he’s hardly considered one of the best runners in the game. However, Bush looked all-world against the Bears at Ford Field. In the span of four games, we’ve witnessed the Bears’ defense suffer multiple breakdowns on multiple fronts. And the pass rush continues to be nonexistent. The Bears sacked Matthew Stafford one time on 35 passing attempts. The individual talent is still present on the roster but, collectively, there is something missing from the Bears’ defense.

3. Alshon Jeffery is on the rise: Jeffery’s five catch for 107 yards and a touchdown performance in Week 4 would have been one of the top stories if the Bears had won. Although Jeffery’s day at Ford Field kind of gets lost in the shuffle of the bitter defeat, it is worth noting that Jeffery has responded well after a so-so game in Week 2 versus the Vikings. Jeffery showed great hands on his 14-yard touchdown reception. And even though he’s not viewed as the fastest wideout on the field, Jeffery can beat a defender deep down the field. The great thing about Jeffery is that because of his size and wingspan, he is skilled at coming down with those 50-50 jump balls that can go either way. The Bears don’t seem to be lacking in the skill position department, and after Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Matt Forte; Jeffery is having one of the Bears’ most productive seasons on offense.

4. Special teams hardly were special: For the second time this season, the Bears’ coverage units were burned for a big return. This time it was Detroit’s Micheal Spurlock taking a punt back 57 yards to set up an easy Lions’ scoring drive. Special teams are held to a high standard around Chicago, and fans aren’t used to seeing that phase of the team struggle. The Bears also had issues with their punting game, which is odd considering Ford Field is an indoor stadium with a controlled climate. Devin Hester didn’t help the cause much when the Bears had opportunities to return the ball, and Hester almost fumbled on one occasion. This really was a complete team loss. All three phases of their game contributed to the Bears’ defeat in Detroit.

5. Future is bright at right guard: Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh is a monster on the interior of the Detroit defensive line. The smart money was on Suh making a couple of plays lined up against Bears rookie right guard Kyle Long. As expected, Suh was a disruptive force in the Bears’ backfield with two sacks and a forced fumble that got scooped up for a touchdown. But Long didn’t do anything to embarrass himself. He more than held his own during his individual battles with Suh. Consider this a learning experience for the rookie. Smart money also suggests Long does a better job against Suh when the teams meet at Soldier Field on Nov. 10. Call it a hunch.

PITTSBURGH -- A few thoughts on the Chicago Bears' 40-23 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers:

What it means: The Bears sit alone atop the NFC North and start 3-0 for the just the second time since 2006.

Stock watch: Jay Cutler put on a gritty performance down the stretch. Cutler threw for just 159 yards and faced more pressure in this outing than he had in the two previous combined. Still, he completed 67 percent of his passes, took care of the ball and made clutch plays late.

Three for 3-0: The Bears captured division titles in each of the past three seasons in which they started 3-0, dating back to 1990, while also winning at least 11 regular-season contests in those seasons.

Scoring D: The Bears scored 24 points off turnovers, including a 42-yard Julius Peppers fumble return for TD and a 38-yard interception return by Major Wright. Wright’s interception return marked the second consecutive game in which the Bears recorded a pick-six.

Tim Jennings scored on an interception in Chicago’s win last week over the Minnesota Vikings.

Just last season, the Bears racked up eight interception return TDs to tie the 1998 Seahawks for second most in NFL history. This season, Chicago is already a quarter of the way there.

Williams contributes: Rookie Jonathan Bostic developed into the favorite to start at middle linebacker because of his play during training camp, but veteran D.J. Williams showed why the staff prefers him in the middle of the defense.

Williams logged two sacks of Ben Roethlisberger, including one on which he stripped the quarterback with James Anderson recovering at the Pittsburgh 17. That turnover led to a Matt Forte TD.

Explosive plays still an issue: Entering the game, the Bears had surrendered eight completions of 20 yards or more, including two of 40-plus yards. In the second quarter alone, the Bears gave up two more long balls (gains of 45 and 33 yards) to Antonio Brown, who snagged a difficult 33-yard TD with 6:27 left in the first half. Roethlisberger also hit a 32-yard completion, a 22-yarder and a 26-yarder before finding Brown for a 21-yard TD with 1:57 left in the third quarter. Roethlisberger also made a 21-yard connection and 27-yarder in the fourth quarter.

This is a problem.

What’s next: The Bears take Monday off before beginning preparations Wednesday for yet another road matchup, this time at Detroit on Sunday.

Here’s a look at five things to watch during Sunday’s game between the Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field:

One-dimensional game from Pittsburgh: Adrian Peterson rushed for 100 yards in Week 2, but the Bears totally minimized his impact on the game, which is likely what they’ll do on Sunday against Pittsburgh’s running backs. According to Elias Sports Bureau, dating back to last season, the Steelers have rushed for fewer than 100 yards in eight games, which represents the team’s longest skid of futility since 1935. That means there’s a good chance the Bears will easily shut down the Steelers early, and make them a one-dimensional passing team. That, in turn, should enhance Chicago’s pass rush, which has struggled thus far this season. With no threat of the rushing attack hurting them, Pittsburgh’s play-action will be ineffective, meaning the Bears can basically pin back their ears and go after the passer.

Chicago’s offensive line against Pittsburgh’s 3-4 front: The Bears faced back-to-back one-gapping 4-3 teams to start the season. So Pittsburgh’s 3-4, two-gapping front will be different than what the Bears are used to dealing with. That could lead to a slight adjustment period in the first half, but it shouldn’t excessively inhibit what the Bears can do on offense.

“It just changes the protection base, and actually your run reads too (as well as) how to get to a certain linebacker if we’re blocking zone schemes and they start blitzing, and everything changes,” said running back Matt Forte. “So it just makes it more difficult that way. I would say most of the NFL runs 4-3. So when you get a 3-4 team, you’ve got to study that 3-4 more than you do 4-3s.”

Complicating matters is the fact the Bears start two rookies on the right side in guard Kyle Long and tackle Jordan Mills.

“Technique is different when you’re playing a 3-4 defense, two-gap, way different,” offensive coordinator Aaron Kromer said. “They play very stout two-gap defense on first and second down with a combination of some pressures. But then on third down, (Steelers defensive coordinator) Dick LeBeau has been known for years to have a lot of tough nickel blitzes, show you one way, blitz the other way, roll a guy down from the line of scrimmage down to a deep half to cover. So that’s what makes it difficult. It’s just hard to see where they’re coming from.”

Julius Peppers: No sack contributions in the first game from Peppers seemed strange, but nothing out of the ordinary. Then, in Week 2, Peppers finished without a sack again, as he played through flu-like symptoms. So Peppers has received passes for his lack of production in the first two contests, but he’ll need to make more of an impact against the Steelers and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who has a penchant for buying time in the pocket with his feet. Peppers has gone three games without a sack just twice during his tenure with the Chicago Bears, and both instances came in 2010, which interestingly, marked the only season with the club in which he didn’t finish with double-digit sack totals.

“This week (the pass rush) is going to be improved,” Peppers said. “I’m not interested in talking about anything from last week. My focus is on Pittsburgh and getting better.”

With a quarterback possessing Roethlisberger’s size, the key is simply “getting him down,” Peppers said.

“He shakes guys off,” said Bears defensive coordinator Mel Tucker. “It usually takes more than one. The first gy usually doesn’t get it done, so we’ve got to get multiple guys on him. He’s one of the tougher guys to get down on the ground, and even when you’re hanging on the guy, he still makes a throw down the field. When he scrambles, he’s looking to throw. He can throw it 60 yards on the run. He’s a rare guy in that way. It’s going to be a huge challenge for us.”

The return of Heath Miller: Miller’s return is significant because of Chicago’s minor struggles against opposing tight ends through the first two games. Miller participated fully in practice earlier in the week, so there’s a good chance he’ll play against the Bears.

Over the first two games, tight ends Kyle Rudolph, Tyler Eifert and Jermaine Gresham have combined for 13 catches and a touchdown to go with 124 yards. So the Bears are allowing tight ends to average nearly 10 yards per reception, which clearly is too much.

The deep ball: Roethlisberger’s mobility causes defenses to break down on the back end, and if you pair that with Chicago’s recent inability to consistently rush the passer, it could conjure a recipe for disaster. The Bears have given up eight completions of 20-plus yards, including two for gains of 42 yards or more. It’s also worth noting that cornerback Charles Tillman has missed practice time with a sore knee, not to mention he struggled in Week 1 against A.J. Green, who finished that matchup with nine catches for 162 yards and two touchdowns.

Given Pittsburgh’s rushing woes, play-action shouldn’t pose much of a threat. But in third-and-long situations, when Roethlisberger is forced to take deep drops, the Bears need to get to him quickly to force errant passes and gobble up sacks.

CHICAGO BEARS (2-0) at PITTSBURGH STEELERS (0-2)

7:30 p.m. CT Sunday at Heinz Field on NBC

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Here is the first installment of the Chicago Bears’ Friday mailbag.

Lee Holland of Norfolk, Va., writes: What’s it going to take for Alshon Jeffery to get more involved in the offense?

Jeff Dickerson: Jeffery didn’t have his best game last week (one catch for five yards, two rushes for 30 yards), but he’s been targeted 13 times through two games. So Jeffery has been involved in the offense, it’s just that Brandon Marshall, Matt Forte and Martellus Bennett have accumulated better statistics heading into Week 3. Jeffery’s time will come. Bears head coach Marc Trestman is likely telling the second-year wideout to stay patient. Jeffery proved to everybody in the preseason that he is reliable weapon in the passing game. Give it some time.

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Bob from Chicago writes: Is Jay Cutler a $20 million a season QB? What options do the Bears have at QB if they don’t believe Cutler is worth that money?

Dickerson: Bob, Cutler is off to a strong start, but it’s only Week 3. The smart move is to wait until later in the year to determine whether or not Cutler is the kind of quarterback the Bears want to invest that heavily in. If Cutler continues to shake off his mistakes and lead the Bears to victories and to the playoffs, then all his money concerns (not that he really has any) will be taken care of. But I don’t feel comfortable writing the ‘Jay Cutler is a new guy’ narrative after two games. The true test will come when the Bears face real adversity. How will Cutler respond? As for Plan B; the Bears really don’t have one. I assume if they decide to not re-sign or franchise Cutler, they would search for his replacement via the draft while also signing a veteran quarterback in free agency. The Bears want to make it work with Cutler, however. That is how the scenario would play out in a perfect world.

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Frank from PA writes: Don’t you think the Bears will be hurt without a legitimate No. 2 receiver as they continue to play tougher teams on their schedule?

Dickerson: Yes, the Bears need a dependable No. 2 wide receiver. But I believe the Bears have two on the roster: Jeffery and Earl Bennett. If Cutler ever gets into a situation where he can’t connect with Marshall, Martellus Bennett or Matt Forte out of the backfield, Jeffery and Earl Bennett are more than capable of catching the football in tough situations. Earl Bennett, especially, has shown that he has great hands. Not good, great. The drawback with those two players has been their inability to stay healthy. But if both are active every week, the Bears should have enough at wide receiver to get them through the season with great success.

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Deryll Ringger from Decatur, IN, writes: Why does Devin Hester let the ball hit the ground when fielding punts instead of saving 20 yards by catching the ball before it hits the ground?

Dickerson: Fair question, Deryll. For all of Hester’s brilliance on kickoff returns (249 yards) last week against Minnesota, he does still have occasional lapses in judgment when determining when to field punts or let them drop. Now, I think Hester’s decision making has improved since last season, but he’ll never be perfect. I guess Bears’ fans will just have to live it. Hester is still capable of busting long returns, and I believe the 76 and 80 yard kickoff returns he busted off versus the Vikings made up for his indecision on punt return.

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Frank from Canada writes: If Julius Peppers continues to be nonexistent while cashing the biggest check on the team, do you expect him to be on the team in 2014?

Dickerson: Obviously, Peppers needs to produce for the Bears to keep him around beyond 2013, but the veteran defensive end has time to turn it around. If Peppers goes off and has a monster night versus the Steelers, some concerns should fade away. However, it’s way too early to determine whether or not the Bears want to carry the $18,183,333 cap charge or pay the $14 million in salary to Peppers in 2014. Even though the Bears are expected to have ample salary-cap space next year, Peppers does have an expensive contract, especially for an older player. But if Peppers starts to light it up and finishes with his standard 11.0 sacks, then maybe it would be worth it. Another factor is the development of Shea McClellin, Corey Wootton and Cornelius Washington. If the Bears feel good enough about the younger players stepping up into larger roles, Peppers could become expendable. But just like with Cutler, Bears general manager Phil Emery has plenty of time before he has to make that call.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- For a meticulous planner such as Chicago Bears coach Marc Trestman, the slow manner in which the offense continues to evolve appears to be a function of design rather than circumstance.

Running back Matt Forte indicated as much on Wednesday, revealing the offense hasn’t “really shown a whole, whole lot.”

“I don’t expect us to two games into the season,” Forte said. “This is a hefty playbook. We’ve got a lot of games left. So we have a lot of stuff saved for teams that play certain coverages or certain fronts. We have a lot of stuff I would say left over that we ran in camp and gone over. We know the stuff. We just put it back on the shelf so that when it is the opportune time to call it, it’ll be called.”

Facing a winless Pittsburgh Steelers team, which operates out of a 3-4 front, Sunday on the road might present Chicago that opportunity to expand the playbook. In its first two outings, the club played similar zone-reliant 4-3 teams in the Cincinnati Bengals and the Minnesota Vikings.

The opponent this week presents a radically different challenge offensively for the Bears, who will be tasked with unfamiliar blocking schemes in their attempt to neutralize Pittsburgh’s pressure.

“They’re different than what we’re used to facing. They’re coming from everywhere. They do it a lot of different ways. They come from different places,” Trestman said. “They’ve got size at their linebacker. The unusual aspect of having size at their linebacker positions where they’re pass-rushers, they represent matchup issues for our backs, particularly our backs. So we’ve got a formula for picking up blitzes, and things change a little bit with 3-4. But we’ve had a lot of work against it. I spent time on it in our OTAs, a little bit of time at training camp. We played against a 3-4 team in the preseason, which helped. Certainly there’s nothing like going against the Steeler 3-4. It’s very good conceptually. It’s structured.”

Forte generated 161 yards from scrimmage in Week 2 on 30 touches against Minnesota’s zone-heavy scheme, which focuses on taking away explosive plays while allowing for completions on underneath routes.

Pittsburgh plays a more aggressive scheme than Chicago’s first two opponents, and despite the Steelers’ two losses, it’s worth noting their defense ranks No. 10 in total yards allowed. Pittsburgh is one of just three teams (with Kansas City and Seattle) to allow only one touchdown through the air. The Steelers have also limited opposing passers to a completion percentage of 55.4, which ranks as sixth-lowest in the NFL, and they’ve given up just 18 first downs through the air.

So it’s highly likely the Bears unveil concepts this week that they haven’t shown thus far.

"That’s part of what Trestman does,” Forte said. “He’s a genius in this offense. We have a lot of different plays that isolate a lot of different people in this offense. But it depends on what the defense is running (on) when to call them. He’s doing a great job of calling them in the right situations so that we can make a play.”

A weekly analysis of the Bears’ quarterback play:

Rewind: Jay Cutler started much faster this week, completing as many passes (19) in the first half as he had thrown through the first two quarters of the opener against Cincinnati (19), while generating a passer rating of 106. Cutler fumbled on a sack from Jared Allen, and the loose ball was returned for a touchdown. Cutler also forced a pass on the goal line that was tipped by Everson Griffen and intercepted. Still, Cutler shook off the mistakes to rally the Bears to their second come-from-behind victory, firing the game-winning TD to Martellus Bennett with 10 seconds remaining. Cutler finished with two touchdown passes and a rating of 97.2.

Fast-forward: Pittsburgh’s 3-4 front presents a challenge the offensive line hasn’t yet seen. So Cutler needs to be patient and maintain confidence in the unit if it struggles early. The Steelers failed to get to Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton on Monday night, and could possibly experience similar struggles against Chicago’s revamped offensive line. If that happens, expect a confident Cutler to light up the Steelers. Pittsburgh struggled against Cincinnati’s tight ends, so Cutler should be looking Bennett’s way often on Sunday.

Reduce the turnovers: Cutler was responsible for three turnovers: two interceptions and a fumble returned for a touchdown. He needs to practice better judgment and ball security. Cutler needlessly forced a pass (although I have no problem with him taking that chance) on the goal line, and another of his picks came as the result of a miscommunication with Brandon Marshall.

Prediction: Cutler’s passer rating should be in the high 90s to low 100s, and he’ll reduce the turnovers, too. He’ll get Marshall another 100-yard receiving day, but expect the main targets to be Bennett and Matt Forte.

RISING

1. Jay Cutler, QB: Cutler turned over the ball three times, including a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. Instead of melting down, Cutler completed 8 of 10 (including a spike to stop the clock) passes for 76 yards on the club's game winning drive, and hit Martellus Bennett on a 16-yard scoring strike for the game-winner. Cutler has now engineered back-to-back comebacks against two 2012 playoff participants. Considering the way Cutler has been able to overcome adversity in these difficult games early on, you've got to be encouraged by his prospects later down the line in big games and possibly the postseason.

2. Matt Forte, RB: After a lackluster season opener in which he rushed for 50 yards on 19 attempts, Forte bounced back in a major way against the Vikings. Forte contributed 161 yards from scrimmage (90 yards rushing, 71 receiving), marking his 13th career game in which he's generated 150 yards or more. Forte was targeted more than any running back in the NFL in Week 2 (11 times) and caught every ball thrown his way. Forte was also a valuable contributor in pass protection. Furthermore, his yards per route run was the highest in the league of any RB and his drop pass rate was the lowest of any RB, according to Pro Football Focus.

3. Devin Hester, KR/PR: Hester seemed poised to bust a few big returns considering he's run back four returns for touchdowns against the Minnesota Vikings, which is the most he's had against any team. When the Vikings returned the opening kickoff 105 yards for a TD, Hester immediately responded on the ensuing kickoff with a 76-yard return. Hester broke his own 2006 record for return yards in a single game (225), by burning the Vikings for 249 yards. His 49.8 yards per return against the Vikings ranked as the third best in franchise history among players with three or more returns in a game.

FALLING

1. Julius Peppers, DE: Peppers missed practice time last week after experiencing flu-like symptoms, and Bears coach Marc Trestman said the defensive end was even more ill against the Vikings than he had been in the previous two days leading into the game. Two games into the season, Peppers has not recorded a sack, and at this time last year, he'd already racked up two. That's not to say Peppers won't produce his third consecutive season with double-digit sack totals, because more than likely he will. But the veteran is certainly off to a slow start, having graded out negatively in both games.

2. Henry Melton, DT: Melton has actually graded out worse than Peppers through the first two games. The club gave Melton the franchise designation in the offseason with the hopes that it could eventually work out a long-term deal with the defensive tackle. But at this point, the franchise might be reconsidering its intentions. Melton has contributed three tackles thus far, with no sacks or quarterback pressures. Through the first two games of the 2012 season, Melton had posted three sacks. So like Peppers, Melton is off to a slow start.

3. Jermon Bushrod, LT: The prized acquisition of free agency, Bushrod signed on to be Cutler's blindside protection, and while he's been a significant upgrade over former left tackle J'Marcus Webb, there's still room for improvement. According to Pro Football Focus, Bushrod graded out as the worst of Chicago's offensive linemen against the Vikings. He surrendered a sack, a quarterback hit and three hurries against the Vikings. Through the first two games, Bushrod has given up two quarterback hits and six pressures, in addition to grading out negatively in each contest.

An examination of four hot issues from the Bears’ 31-30 win over the Vikings:

Cutler’s comebacks: In crunch time, Jay Cutler has been more composed than in past performances, which is why he was able to recover from three turnovers and rally the team for the second consecutive week. Cutler believes in the system and the coaches, and that’s paid dividends. It’s also a reason the normally fiery Cutler, according to teammates, has been the calmest player in the huddle during critical situations.

On the sideline, Cutler’s sounding board is quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh.

“Nothing really rattles him,” Cutler said. “He just taps the bench and says come over and sit down. We talk it out. If I’ve got to vent, he lets me get it off my chest and moves straight to the pictures. He’s a calming influence.”

Pass rush still lacking: The Bears forced three turnovers, which is pretty standard for the defense, but the club still hasn’t generated consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Bears go into Week 3 with just two sacks. At this point last season, the team had racked up eight.

“Early on last year, we started off with a bunch more sacks,” defensive end Corey Wootton said. “I don’t think we played up to our caliber with the arsenal we have up front.”

The front four’s highest-paid defenders, Julius Peppers and Henry Melton, have combined for five tackles with zero sacks. With them earning a combined $18.35 million in base salary this season, they’re making a combined $458,750 per tackle so far, by my math.

Dual-threat Forte: Matt Forte touched the ball 30 times and finished with 161 yards from scrimmage, way above his average of 102 yards per game going into the season. Forte has recorded 150 yards or more from scrimmage in 13 career games.

What’s more, Cutler targeted Forte more than go-to receiver Brandon Marshall for the first time since last season’s Week 2 loss at Green Bay. The change stems from the way the club now deploys Forte in the passing game, and provides Cutler another weapon when teams take away options such as Marshall, Alshon Jeffery and Martellus Bennett.

“We’ve got some guys that want the ball,” Cutler said. “Whenever we give them opportunities, they make plays.”

Cracks in special teams: Cordarrelle Patterson’s 105-yard TD return on the opening kickoff marked the first time the Bears gave up a kickoff-return touchdown since Sept. 30, 2007, against Detroit. Although the Bears immediately responded with a 76-yard return by Devin Hester, there appear to be weaknesses in Chicago’s coverage units.

“I saw a big hole. No way I could’ve missed it,” Patterson said.

In the opener, the punt-coverage unit surrendered a 50-yard return by Adam Jones on the team’s first punt of the day, but it was nullified by an illegal block above the waist.

“It’s hard to be minus-2 in turnovers and get a kick return for a touchdown and win the game,” Bears coach Marc Trestman said.

CHICAGO – Here are five things we learned in the Chicago Bears’ 31-30 win over the Minnesota Vikings:

1. Jay Cutler led in crunch time. Cutler made his share of mistakes on Sunday, but he managed to shake them off and guide the Bears 66 yards down the field in 3:05 to score the game-winning touchdown on a 16-yard pass to tight end Martellus Bennett. Cutler went 7 for 10 on the drive, but keep in mind he had to spike the ball to kill the clock and that his first pass of the drive bounced off an official standing in the middle of the field in front of intended target Alshon Jeffery (another incomplete pass to Jeffery got wiped out by a holding penalty). This is why the Bears traded for Cutler four years ago: to win games. When the chips were down, the quarterback stayed calm, put the team on his shoulders and led them to a come-from-behind victory in the closing minutes of an important game. What an encouraging start to the season for Cutler in a contract year.

2. Turnovers keep inferior teams in games. Now for the bad part: The Bears almost handed the game to Minnesota -- literally. It’s hard to win when a team commits four turnovers. The Bears were able to survive versus the Vikings, but next time they probably won’t be so lucky. In the span of a little more than three minutes in the second quarter, Cutler was sacked and fumbled the ball, which Minnesota returned for a touchdown, and threw an interception in the end zone on first-and-goal from the Vikings’ 1-yard line that killed a prime scoring chance. Cutler later tossed a pick on a deep ball to Brandon Marshall, and Matt Forte had the ball ripped away at the end of a run. Both of those turnovers came in the fourth quarter. Throw in a special-teams breakdown on Cordarrelle Patterson’s 105-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff, and the Bears have plenty of mistakes to correct going into their Week 3 game at Pittsburgh. That should prevent the team from feeling too good about themselves this week in practice.

3. Devin Hester is again ridiculous. People snickered at the positive reviews Hester received from observers during training camp, but even the most anti-Hester fans have to admit he ran with a purpose on Sunday, returning five kickoffs for a career-high 249 yards, with long runs of 76 and 80 yards. The decision to limit Hester to strictly special teams was a brilliant one. He has fresh legs. That’s been obvious since the preseason. But the most important thing with Hester is always his confidence. Ever since he got over the whole ‘I want to retire’ drama at the end of last season, Hester has been walking tall with his head held high. When Hester feels good about himself, he’s dangerous. Don’t be surprised to see his success in the return game snowball over the next couple of weeks. That’s how it goes with Hester.

4. Defense is still searching for an identity. The Bears continue to take the ball away on defense, which is good, but they are simply not generating enough pressure up front. Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder attempted 30 passes and was sacked just once. That’s not good enough. For the second straight week, Pro Bowl defensive linemen Julius Peppers and Henry Melton were non-factors, with a combined three tackles (before the coaches review the film). What’s going on up front? Overall, the Bears surrendered six plays of 20-plus yards against Minnesota after being torched repeatedly by Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green in Week 1. To be fair, the Vikings scored 14 points on Sunday on a fumble return and a kickoff return. But I think we would all agree the defense looks very un-Bears-like to open the regular season.

5. Ponder better than expected. Ponder is still the fourth-best quarterback in the NFC North, but he deserves some credit for almost leading the Vikings to their first win in Chicago since 2007. Ponder completed some key throws late to finish with 227 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception, while also showing no fear running with the football. He took a heck of a hit from Bears linebacker James Anderson near the home team’s sideline in the second half, but at no point did Ponder shy away from the contact. Minnesota is still 0-2 and in deep trouble already with two loses to NFC North teams, but I don’t think Vikings fans will be clamoring for Matt Cassel to start anytime soon. Or at least they shouldn’t be.

CHICAGO -- A few thoughts on the Chicago Bears' 31-30 win over the Minnesota Vikings:

What it means: The typically opportunistic Bears nearly learned what it was like to basically give away a game via turnovers. The Vikings scored 13 points off turnovers, including six in the second half. But Jay Cutler brought back Chicago by throwing a scoring strike to Martellus Bennett with 10 ticks remaining. If anything, the Bears proved resilient in building a 2-0 record on consecutive come-from-behind victories.

Stock watch: Despite the comeback, Jay Cutler’s stock takes a fall here. After a strong performance in Week 1, Cutler committed two costly turnovers -- including a fumble returned for a TD -- that led to 10 Vikings points.

Return-a-thon: Rookie Cordarrelle Patterson broke the opening kickoff 105 yards for a score, marking the first time since Sept. 30, 2007 (at Detroit) Chicago allowed a kickoff return TD; it was the second-longest against the Bears (Green Bay’s Al Carmichael scored on a 106-yard kickoff return on Oct. 7, 1956).

The Bears answered immediately with a 76-yard return by Devin Hester on the ensuing kickoff. Hester broke his previous franchise record of 245 yards on kickoff returns (249).

50^th anniversary: The Bears honored members of the 1963 world championship team prior to Sunday’s game. That team, coached by George S. Halas, finished with a record of 11-1-2, and outscored opponents 301-154.

Offensive line still developing: Chicago’s Week 1 performance provided encouraging signs about the offensive line’s future, but the Vikings gave the Bears somewhat of a reality check. Coming off the edge, Jared Allen blasted left tackle Jermon Bushrod into Matt Forte, and sacked Cutler for an 8-yard loss, causing the quarterback to fumble. Brian Robison scooped up the loose ball and scored from 61 yards out to tie the score at 14.

Although sacked only once, Cutler was under duress, especially in the second quarter. There’s room to grow.

Start of new record? The Bears scored on eight INT returns last season to tie the 1998 Seattle Seahawks for second most in NFL history. Maybe Tim Jennings' pick-six of Christian Ponder in the second quarter marks the start of the quest for a new record. The 1961 San Diego Chargers hold the NFL record for INT returns for TDs in a single season (nine).

What’s next: The Bears return to Halas Hall on Monday for treatment and review of Sunday’s game before taking Tuesday off. The club begins preparations Wednesday for its first road game of the season at Pittsburgh.

Here are five things to watch Sunday when the Chicago Bears host the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field:

Faster start from the offense: The Bears started off slowly in Week 1 because Marc Trestman wanted to first see whether the offensive line could adequately protect Cutler, before potentially exposing him to punishment. So after the protection proved sufficient in the first two quarters, Trestman decided to open up the offense, and the results were near immediate. After putting up 97 yards of offense in the first half, the Bears racked up 226 more in quarters Nos. 3 and 4.

The Bears will go into this game looking to open things up offensively from the onset.

“Early in the game especially against a front like [Cincinnati’s] there’s a little bit of uncertainty about what’s going to happen,” Cutler said. “We had two new guys on the right side, four new guys in general. As we progressed through the game I got more comfortable. Marc [Trestman] got more comfortable calling plays and being able to trust them. Even looking at the film on Monday there were times whenever I was moving around or I could have stepped up and I didn’t. That’s just gaining trust in those guys and not only throughout a game, but throughout a season I’m going to get more and more trust with them.”

More pressure from the front four: Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton fired the ball quickly at the end of his drops, but Minnesota will be looking to connect on more home run balls than the Bengals, in part, because the Vikings expect the Bears to be overly focused on stopping Adrian Peterson. The Vikings will give the Bears a big dosage of Peterson, and then look to get the ball deep off play-action to Jerome Simpson or Greg Jennings. But for those types of plays to work, Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder will have to hold onto the ball for a while to let the routes develop.

“They live off of play-action,” Bears safety Chris Conte said. “Their running game is what gets them going, and we really just have to be prepared for [Ponder] on the move. He’s really good outside the pocket. So boots and play-action really is the big thing against them.”

That means players such as defensive end Julius Peppers and defensive tackle Henry Melton might be poised to nab their first sacks of the season.

“We’ve got to generate the pass rush with [the] four [down] linemen,” defensive coordinator Mel Tucker said.

More production from the rushing attack: Rookie right tackle Jordan Mills put together a strong NFL debut, as did veteran left guard Matt Slauson, but the rest of the offensive line -- which played fairly well -- needs to step up its game a notch.

Matt Forte finished the season opener with 60 yards on 19 attempts, and as a team the Bears rushed for 81 yards, averaging 2.9 yards per attempt. Obviously, that’s not good enough.

“We thought we would run the ball better [in the opener]; we didn’t,” Trestman said. “We didn’t run the ball as effectively as we’d like to be able to.”

Will secondary targets step up if Brandon Marshall is neutralized? They’ll certainly have to, but it appears the Bears are equipped to handle the Vikings taking away Marshall. In the opener, Cutler targeted three receivers (Alshon Jeffery, Forte and Martellus Bennett) other than Marshall at least six times, which is promising considering last season, the quarterback completed more than five passes to only one other receiver not named Marshall in a game (Forte).

With another week of practice under his belt, Earl Bennett might wind up playing a more prominent role in the offense. Trestman said Bennett is ready after catching one pass in the opener. It’s also important to note the chemistry Bennett shares with Cutler.

“Oh he’s caught up,” Trestman said of Bennett. “He’s had catches in practice, and been one of the targets in practice and that bodes well for us.”

Devin Hester on returns: Of Hester’s 19 touchdowns on kickoff or punt returns, four have come against the Minnesota Vikings. So he’s victimized Minnesota more than any other team in the NFL, with his last touchdown coming on a 98-yard kickoff return on Oct. 16, 2011.

“The first kickoff return (against Cincinnati last week), obviously, he gets it out to the 31. I blinked my eyes, and all of the sudden, I was like, ‘Wow, he’s at the 31,’” special-teams coach Joe DeCamillis said. “So he’s still got the speed, no question. Hopefully we’ll get more opportunities with the guys we’re playing.”

So if Hester is poised to finally break a TD return, the Vikings would seem to be the mostly likely opponent to do it against.

CHICAGO BEARS (1-0) vs. MINNESOTA VIKINGS (0-1)

Noon, Sunday at Soldier Field on FOX

After three straight head coaches with defensive backgrounds, the Chicago Bears turned to Marc Trestman, a veteran offensive coordinator, to lead the franchise.

The faces of the franchise, linebacker Brian Urlacher and Lovie Smith, a former defensive coordinator, are gone now, replaced by quarterback Jay Cutler and Trestman, whose biggest focus on game day is calling plays. Although the defense still has plenty of familiar names in Tillman, Briggs and Peppers and familiar early results (see three forced turnovers in Week 1), has the Bears' calling card transitioned to offense under their new head coach?

Our panel weighs in on that and more:

Fact or Fiction: The Bears' identity has shifted from a defensive team to an offensive one.

Jeff Dickerson: Fiction. Just because the offense came to life in the second half to score a pair of touchdowns in Week 1 doesn't mean the Bears are an offensive juggernaut. The name of the game for the Bears is still defense. There are several areas the Bears need to correct on defense in Week 2 (pass rush, tackling, busted coverages), but the defense still forced three turnovers and held the Bengals to 21 points. Maybe down the line the Bears can talk about their offense being on the same level as the defense, but to anoint the offense as the calling card of the team after one week is premature, and kind of disrespectful to the Bears defenders that have made so many outstanding contributions to the franchise over the years.

Jon Greenberg: Fact. By hiring Trestman, the spotlight is naturally on the offense. Cutler and Brandon Marshall are the biggest names on the team and given that Lance Briggs and Peanut Tillman are older, Jay and Brandon represent the faces of the franchise. You will start seeing more and more resources devoted to the offense. Look at the offseason additions. The big money was spent on linemen and tight end Martellus Bennett. That's a good thing, because you need to have a dynamic offense to succeed in this league. Just don't let the defense lapse.

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