CINCINNATI -- A few thoughts on the Chicago Bears' 21-10 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

What it means: Burn the tape. Except for a late first half scoring drive, Jay Cutler and the Bears’ starting offense accomplished very little. Some of that is due to injuries. The Bears, after all, played without top receivers Alshon Jeffery, Eddie Royal and Marquess Wilson. But the Bears were unable to run the football with much success, and the offensive line is still a problem area. Six drives, five punts. On defense, the Bears barely put up a fight. It didn’t matter who was at quarterback for the Cincinnati. The Bengals marched the ball down the field at will when the starters were in the game.

Play of the game: Late in the first half, Cutler fired a ball to Marc Mariani that went for a nifty 13-yard completion. Mariani actually lost the football in midair but recovered to make the catch before he hit the ground.

Stat of note: How bad was the first half? The Bengals outgained the Bears 210-114. Chicago also committed five penalties in the opening 30 minutes. That’s been a disturbing trend all preseason.

Injuries of note: Veteran defensive lineman Jeremiah Ratliff suffered an ankle injury in the first half and did not return. Ratliff has already been ruled out of the first three regular season games because he violated the NFL’s substance abuse policy, but Ratliff’s likely replacement, rookie Eddie Goldman, also left the game early because of a concussion. The Bears also lost cornerback Tracy Porter (hamstring) and wide receiver John Chiles (possible concussion) to injuries. No. 2 quarterback Jimmy Clausen walked off the field late in the fourth quarter after taking a shot from Bengals linebacker P.J. Dawson.

What’s next: The Bears wrap up their preseason next Thursday at Soldier Field against the Cleveland Browns. Head coach John Fox is expected to rest the majority of his starters. Get ready for a healthy dose of David Fales at quarterback.