LAKE FOREST, Ill. – You don’t need to be a relationship expert like Dr. Phil to understand that the bond between Rex Grossman and Ron Turner has been a key factor in the resurgence of the Bears passing game.

With the quarterback and offensive coordinator in their second season together, the undefeated Bears are one of only three NFL teams to compile over 225 passing yards in each of their first four games. Grossman is tied for second in the league with a career-high 8 touchdown passes and ranks fifth with a 100.8 passer rating.

Quarterback Rex Grossman has led the Bears to their first 4-0 start since 1991.

“To have a relationship, my wife tells me you have to spend some time together,” coach Lovie Smith said with a smile.

“They’ve done that. In the offseason, you really get a chance to get to know each other and pick each other’s mind throughout. I think that’s helped a lot, them being around each other for a period of time and just going through all the different situations that they have.”

Grossman feels that Turner consistently puts him in the best possible situations to succeed.

“He just does a great job of scheming the opponent’s defense and calling plays to attack certain looks and giving me options,” Grossman said. “(He says), ‘If it’s not that look, you go here. If you get this look, go here.’ I feel like I’m just back there kind of stealing.

“If I see this look, I realize that he wants me to go there and then I throw the ball. It just seems like he’s making it very easy for me to understand what he wants.”

When asked about the quarterback’s comments, Turner deflected the credit to Grossman, who in September became the first Bears player to be named NFC Offensive Player of the Month since running back Neal Anderson was honored in 1989.

“I really think it’s the other way around,” Turner said. “It’s easy to put him in that position where he makes plays. He’s giving me credit, but he really shouldn’t. It’s him. It’s Rex going out there making the plays and doing a hell of a job with it.”

Grossman made two remarkable throws to wide receiver Berrian Berrian in last Sunday night’s 37-6 win over the Seattle Seahawks, resulting in a 40-yard touchdown and a 22-yard gain to Seattle's 1-yard line. But Turner was just as impressed with passes that the quarterback either didn’t throw or didn't complete.

“He’s making great decisions,” Turner said. “Rex wants to get the ball down the field. He’s aggressive and he’ll take shots, which is great. To me, that’s his biggest strength. But he’s learning when to do it and when not to do it.

“He had a couple plays (Sunday) where he just threw the ball away, threw it clearly out of bounds, which was great to see. We also had a couple run/pass checks at the line of scrimmage where there was kind of a gray area. He could have easily gone with the pass and he went with the run. You gave him that option a few weeks ago and it was going to be a throw every time. So I think he’s maturing. I think he’s getting a real good feel for the offense and he’s making great decisions.”

Grossman led the Bears to their fourth straight win against a complex Seahawks defense by completing 17 of 31 passes for 232 yards with 2 touchdowns, no interceptions and a 100.5 passer rating.

“Most teams run two or three coverages and they blitz off that and do some different stuff,” Grossman said. “But Seattle gave me so many different looks and coach Turner just did a great job of going through each coverage and understanding what works and where to go with the ball when you get that coverage.

“He just does a great job of allowing us to attack the defense no matter what they do. Somewhere in the play there’s a good pass route for a certain coverage.”

Grossman’s emergence has reminded some of the success that Erik Kramer enjoyed in 1995 when Turner was in his first stint as Bears offensive coordinator. Kramer established team passing records that still stand with 315 completions, 522 attempts, 3,838 yards and 29 TDs.

“Erik will get mad at me, but (Grossman) is more talented than Erik,” Turner said when asked to compare the two quarterbacks. “He gets rid of the ball quicker (and) just (has) better physical skills.

“Erik did a great job obviously and had a great year. They’re similar in some regards. I think Rex is a little more aggressive—he’ll take the shots a little bit more where we kind of have to pull back and make sure he’s doing them at the right time. The similarities I think are accuracy and Erik made great decisions that year as well.”

After four impressive starts, Grossman is currently on pace to finish the season with 312 completions, 500 attempts, 4,244 yards and 32 TDs. But shattering Kramer’s records is obviously not the team's primary objective.

“We haven’t talked about that,” Turner said. “I don’t even know anything about the stats, I really don’t, and hopefully Rex doesn’t. What we’re focusing on is winning and making the right decisions, and if we get caught up in (stats), then we’re doing things for the wrong reasons.

“But if Rex keeps throwing the ball the way he’s throwing—with great accuracy, throwing it down the field well, making the decisions he’s making—and the guys around him continue to step up, I think we’ll be able to continue to move the ball and score some points.”