BEARS IN BRIEF: Penalties starting to haunt Bears

Bears coach Lovie Smith keeps saying the Bears are not accustomed to the penalties they have been receiving, but at some point, he's going to have to admit it's an issue.

The Bears were penalized 10 times for 75 yards in the 10-6 loss Thursday at San Francisco, the fourth time they've been penalized at least nine times in a game this season. The Bears have committed 61 penalties for 509 yards, and although they have a jump on the week, only the Green Bay Packers (62) have more penalties and only the Baltimore Ravens (590) have had more yardage marked off.

''The penalties, that hasn't been something we've done a lot of, as far as past games,'' Smith said. ''It hurts you in the end. They can beat you in the end, and that's what happened.''

An offside call against Adewale Ogunleye wiped out an interception by Lance Briggs, and the Bears have shown a lack of discipline. Quarterback Jay Cutler was fined $20,000 by the NFL for abuse of a game official stemming from the unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty he received last Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. It's the second time in two seasons a Bears captain has been penalized and fined. Brian Urlacher was tagged for the same offense last season at Atlanta.

Smith's Bears set a franchise record with 124 penalties in 2004. Then they ranged from 105 to 112 annually before having only 78 in '08, the fewest since Dick Jauron's Bears had 63 in 2001.

Speaking of fines, Tommie Harris was tagged $7,500 by the league for punching the Cardinals' Deuce Lutu.

Kevin Shaffer replaced left tackle Orlando Pace at the start of the fourth quarter after Pace was knocked out of the game with a concussion. Pace was hit by 49ers linebacker Parys Haralson on Mark Roman's interception return.

''I don't know what the diagnosis is, it's kind of tough to focus,'' Pace said. ''I think the guy kind of caught me with a good shot.''

The Bears had announced Pace had the wind knocked out of him, something he took exception to because that wouldn't have kept him out of the game.

The diagnosis also makes you wonder why Frank Omiyale replaced Josh Beekman for the final drive of the game.

''We knew we were going to be throwing it, obviously every down, and just decided to go with [Omiyale],'' offensive coordinator Ron Turner said.