LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- According to Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, Tampa Bay’s Josh McCown “isn’t much of a bettor.”

So don’t expect the quarterbacks to place any friendly wagers on Sunday’s matchup between the Bears and Buccaneers at Soldier Field.

“I wish him well except for this week,” Cutler said of his former backup. “We’ll go at it head to head and see what happens.”

Cutler experienced somewhat of resurgence last season, his first under head coach Marc Trestman, and credits his working relationship with McCown as one of the factors in his improvement. Cutler produced a career-high passer rating of 89.2 last season as the Bears finished eighth in total offense.

Filling in as the starter for five games while Cutler was injured last season, McCown threw 13 touchdown passes and only one interception. Both quarterbacks combined for five 300-yard passing performances in 2013, which tied a franchise single-season record established in 1954 and tied in 1999.

The synergy between Cutler and McCown in the meeting room resulted in both quarterbacks excelling.

“I think Josh is good for a lot of people,” Cutler explained. “I think you could pair him up with probably most of the people in this room, and he’d find a way to help make you better. He’s not going to make you worse. I know that. He’s just one of those types of people. So I know he’s doing good things for that quarterback room in Tampa, just like he did for us.”

So why did they click?

“He’s played the position at a lot of different places,” Cutler said. “So we were coming into a new system [in 2013]. He had been through a lot of new systems like I had. We helped each other learn. His journey and as many places as he’d been, he’s been through some ups and downs. So he knew what the position was about, what it took to play the position. So he could relate really well.”

Bears general manager Phil Emery and Trestman have also been complimentary of McCown’s time in Chicago, with both expressing happiness when the quarterback signed a two-year deal in free agency to join the Buccaneers.

“It’ll be fun to see the guys and all that, but at the end of the day our focus is on going up there and getting a win because we need it for our team,” McCown said. “When you’re 2-8, you need wins. So that’s my focus. But I’m looking forward to it. It’s fun. I have so much love for all those guys up there, and anytime you get to do that -- against guys you know -- it just makes it more fun because you know how they’re going to prepare, and you know they’re going to give you their best. So I’m looking forward to that.”