CHICAGO – Jay Cutler received a rousing ovation when he was introduced at the annual Bears Expo Sunday at Soldier Field. But even with the addition of the Pro Bowl quarterback, coach Lovie Smith insisted that the Bears will not dramatically alter their blueprint for success. 

Coach Lovie Smith answers a question from a fan during the annual Bears Expo Sunday at Soldier Field.

“I don’t think anything will change as far as our philosophy on winning football games,” Smith told reporters. “We have to be able to play great defense; not good defense, great defense. And we plan on doing that.

“Special teams are a big part of what we do, and then the offensive part comes into play. Most fans and most people in general want to know exactly how the offense will do, and we plan on winning games with our offense too.”

Cutler hasn’t missed an offseason workout and will be on the field Wednesday when the Bears conduct the first of 14 organized team activity (OTA) workouts.

“Jay has been everything we wanted him to be, becoming a leader in the locker room, showing up for voluntary offseason workouts every day,” Smith said. 

“We’re getting a lot of great work done, but we’re anxious to get to this next phase.”

The acquisition of Cutler continues to create a huge buzz.

“The energy level has been unbelievable,” said Bears president and CEO Ted Phillips. “And not just with the fans, but internally with the staff, the coaches and the players. It’s just a new energy level.

“We’ve got a lot of guys who were hurt last year who didn’t play up to snuff. Guys are just rising to the occasion. The workouts have been unbelievable. Yeah, I hear it from the fans now. Even as the Bulls were going through their great playoff run and the Blackhawks still are, fans still want to talk about the Bears and what this season holds for them.”

Cutler’s presence helped make the Bears Expo a huge success.

“I think we’re expecting about 5,000 fans,” Phillips said. “It’s incredible. People were lining up at 5:30 this morning to get in at 10 a.m. It’s our chance to give back, show them a little insider information. They love the autographs. 

"I think we have more players this year—current and alumni—than we’ve ever had. That’s a tribute to our team, too, that they get it. They understand what the fans are and what it’s all about, so we appreciate that.”

The euphoria created by the Cutler trade is already beginning to create lofty expectations.

“The expectations are very high and rightfully so,” Smith said. “Any quarterback in the NFL, especially a quarterback here in Chicago, there are big shoes to fill and Jay came here knowing all of that.

“But you can’t worry about all that. He just has to do what he’s done all his life; play great football at the quarterback position, and we expect him to do that.”