Bears coach John Fox supports QB Jay Cutler

INDIANAPOLIS -- Chicago Bears coach John Fox sounded excited about moving forward with Jay Cutler on Wednesday after being noncommittal on the quarterback for much of last season.

"[I feel] a lot better [about Jay]," Fox said from the NFL scouting combine. "Again, back to the relationship thing. I think you file things and you put it back there, but you always like to figure it out on your own. And he was probably one of the brightest spots, I think, about our first year in Chicago and getting to know our players, which we know a lot better now than we did at this time a year ago. So I saw way more about his mental toughness. I saw way more about how he can absorb an offense and execute it under pressure. I think that speaks volumes for how successful he was on third downs, which is a tough down for a quarterback in the NFL. But I was very, very pleased with what I saw and what we have to work with going forward."

Cutler had arguably his best year with the Bears last season. He passed for 3,659 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions en route to posting a career-high 92.3 quarterback rating under former offensive coordinator Adam Gase, who left in January to become the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

Gase's departure means Cutler is now on his sixth offensive coordinator since he arrived in Chicago via the Denver Broncos in 2009.

The Bears promoted Cutler's old quarterbacks coach, Dowell Loggains, to replace Gase as offensive coordinator. Lowell previously called plays for parts of two seasons with the Tennessee Titans.

"[Loggains] is a heck of a young coach. He's got a great background. He's worked with people philosophically that I share ideas with offensively," Fox said. "I thought he did a tremendous job with Jay, and that was a big reason for Jay's, you know, the kind of success he enjoyed this year."

Cutler is under contract through 2020, but the guaranteed portion of his money will run out after the 2016 season.

The Bears hold the No. 11 pick in the 2016 NFL draft. General manager Ryan Pace said earlier in the offseason that the team would not hesitate to draft a quarterback this year if the right one is available.