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LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Living with inexperience in the NFL week to week is never easy. After one game, the Chicago Bears already realize this, particularly on offense. Young players like wide receiver Kevin White and center Cody Whitehair received baptisms in Sunday's 23-14 loss at Houston with their share of struggles.
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Going forward will be a week-to-week learning process.
"I think we haven't been whole for very long and particularly the offensive line," Bears coach John Fox said.
Throwing recent acquisition Josh Sitton in at left guard alongside Whitehair at center -- after Whitehair had very little time at that position in preseason --played a role in five sacks of Jay Cutler, including four in the second half when the game was decided.
"We just added a guy this past week," Fox said about Sitton. "He slid in, we kind of juggled two guys. All in all, I think the ability is there.
"Now, it's just getting on the same page."
One bad center exchange between Cutler and Whitehair on a fourth-and-1 quarterback sneak at the Houston 31 in the first quarter resulted in a missed scoring chance and gave Houston momentum.
"That's with me and Cody (Whitehair)," Cutler said. "We've just got to get that center-QB down, and not put it on the ground. It takes two to make that work."
Whitehair blamed himself
"Cody's going to," Cutler said. "That's the type of guy he is. He's a team guy. It means a lot to him."
A bigger issue in the long run is getting the pass blocking down to keep Cutler from taking a beating like he did against Houston.
"I don't feel great," Cutler admitted. "I didn't get hit a lot in preseason, so the last time I've been hit like that was last year.
"Usually, you want to build in to these, and then week four and five, when you've gotten used to it, take a few shots then. I'll bounce back pretty quickly though."
Houston took advantage of the inexperience in the center of the line by stunting and running what essentially were pick plays to free up defensive linemen coming through between the guard positions.
"I'd say it's just time and experience," Cutler said. "It's Cody's first game out there. Sit's (Josh Sitton) been with us for four or five days."
Whitehair expressed confidence the line will eventually pick up these tactics.
"I just have to set off the ball a little more," Whitehair said. "That was my biggest thing, leaving the guys next to me out to dry.
"I've just got to set off the ball a little bit more."
White has had his problems in preseason blending into the offense in what is his first season playing after missing last year with shin surgery. He obviously failed to complete a route that resulted in a game-changing interception in the third quarter with the Bears up 14-10.
That one play changed the game.
"I'll talk to Kevin about it, but it's the first game out there," Cutler said. "It left my hands, so it's my responsibility."
White caught three passes for 34 yards but was targeted seven times, the worst ratio on the receiving corps.
Cutler doesn't expect White to get down on himself after the mistake.
"We need him," Cutler said. "He's going to be fine. We're not worried about him. We like our group of receivers out there."
A late-week hamstring issue had become a problem for White and may have made an impact.
"I wasn't really worried about the hamstring," he said. "I was out there so I've got to perform. It'll get better and we'll get better."
The problems were predictable, especially in a road game.
"You don't see defenses like this week in and week out," Cutler said about Houston.
The Bears face a different concept but an effective defense against Philadelphia Monday night at home.
"We're going to get better," Cutler said. "But I don't want to pin exactly what this offense is going to be or what direction we're going until we get a little more involved."
