CHICAGO – Alex Brown absolved Bears coaches of blame after the defense allowed four touchdowns and two field goals on Arizona’s first six possessions in Sunday’s 41-21 loss at Soldier Field.

“It’s all the players. It’s not the coaches,” said the defensive end. “They make the right calls. They make good calls. We can’t damn tackle. I missed two tackles in the backfield today, and I don't do that. I’m not supposed to do that. I’m supposed to make those plays. But we can’t miss plays. We've got to make plays.”

Alex Brown forced a fumble while producing the Bears' only sack of Kurt Warner in the fourth quarter of Sunday's 41-21 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

Brown couldn’t explain why the Bears defense was able to deliver back-to-back three-and-outs late in the third quarter after allowing the Cardinals to convert their first eight third-down chances in the game.

“For about five minutes there in that game, we actually believed that we could win, and we played like it,” Brown said. “Why the hell we can’t do that from the first play? That’s what we've got to figure out. If we can do that, we can be pretty good. But if not, then we’re going to go home just like a bunch of other teams at the end of the season.”

Asked if expectations are too high for the Bears defense, Brown said: “I don't think so. What are you expecting, for us to be one of the best in the league? That’s what we expect. Do we have the talent to do it? Yes. Why isn’t it getting done? I have no idea. The coaches are putting us in great position to make the plays.

“We’re just not making them, until we get in a position where our backs are against the wall, and then it’s like, ‘All right. Let’s go play.’ Why can’t we do that when it’s 0-0? Let’s come out and play like our backs against the wall. If we can do that, then I think we can right the ship and go in the right direction. But if not, like I said, we’ll be going home soon.”

In the air: Jay Cutler passed for 369 yards in Sunday’s loss, the second most yards in his career and  the seventh most in Bears history. The fourth-year quarterback completed 29 of 47 passes with three touchdowns, one interception and a 98.6 passer rating.

Cutler threw on all six plays on the Bears’ first possession, completing five passes for 90 yards, capped by a 33-yard touchdown to tight end Greg Olsen. The drive also included a perfectly-thrown 42-yard completion to Devin Hester, who beat tight coverage from cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.

“A couple of them we had runs called and they were in an eight-man front, so we checked it,” said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. “They were run/pass checks, so if they’re going to play eight in the box, we’re going to throw. We wanted to run it some, but it was based on what they were giving us, and they were some checks.”

Wrong direction: Robbie Gould needed to make his first two field goals Sunday to become the most accurate kicker in NFL history. But after his only attempt, a 48-yarder, was deflected, he slipped into third place behind the Chargers’ Nate Kaeding.

Gould has connected on 120 of 140 attempts in five seasons, an 85.7 percent success rate that trails all-time leader Mike Vanderjagt (86.5 on 230 of 266) and Kaeding (85.8 on 133 of 155).

Gould’s 48-yard try Sunday was deflected by Rodgers-Cromartie and caught in the end zone by Antrel Rolle, who returned it 59 yards to the Bears’ 49 with :22 left in the second quarter. Neil Rackers followed with a 43-yard field goal on the final play of the half to give the Cardinals a 31-7 lead.

Sod story: While it was reported that Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin would play Sunday despite an ankle injury, Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt opted to hold Boldin out of the game after watching him work out during pre-game warm-ups. 

“My biggest concern was the condition of the field,” Whisenhunt said. “The field was thick and loose, and the footing on it wasn’t great. We’ve seen guys slipping and falling in other games, and I was afraid he could easily turn his ankle on that field coming out of a break.”