Standing as close as he'll get to Soldier Field sod until August, Chicago running back Matt Forte glanced out onto the stadium grass and envisioned what the Bears offense could do in Year Two under coach Marc Trestman.

"If we keep working hard we're going to take this offense, hopefully, to the top of the league," Forte said. "There's no ceiling. There's no limit that you can put on it."

The Bears gathered at their home field Saturday evening for the 19th annual Bears Care Gala. The sold out event benefits breast and ovarian cancer research and treatment programs in Chicago, and has raised more than $11 million over the last 18 years.

As Forte dreamed about the strides Chicago's offense could take with an offseason of fine-tuning, he did so in the presence of the teammates and coaches who could help make it all possible. And when the Bears continue their organized team activities this week, there will be a new face on the field looking to secure his spot with the offense — recently signed quarterback Jimmy Clausen.

In bringing in Clausen, Trestman reiterated what Bears general manager Phil Emery has said all along: the goal is to stay competitive throughout the year, up and down the roster.

"We brought Jimmy Clausen in because we want to have competition and Jimmy was available," Trestman said, noting the somewhat awkward timing of adding a fifth quarterback. "It's just the way it worked out."

Still, Trestman said the acquisition of Clausen doesn't have anything to do with the performance of presumptive backup quarterback Jordan Palmer, who is entering his second season with the Bears after playing behind Jay Cutler and Josh McCown last year.

"They're not connected," Trestman said. "I told (Palmer) we were going to bring in another quarterback who had some experience, and that we were going to continue to keep the competition open on a daily basis."

The Bears have yet to decide whether or not they will carry five quarterbacks when they head to Bourbonnais for training camp, but Trestman said they would reassess the situation at the end of OTAs.

Long offseason: After missing much of last season's OTAs because of his university's class schedule, guard Kyle Long, the Bears' first round pick in the 2013 draft finally is experiencing a full summer with his teammates at Halas Hall.

Although he started all 16 games as a rookie, Long now believes he has an opportunity to slow the game down and work at his position — even if the pads don't go on for awhile.

"We do a lot of work on fundamentals and techniques," Trestman said of the offensive line at OTA practices. "Individual work. (I'm) is up against Jeremiah Ratliff every day. That's getting better."

Fuller report: The Bears' 2014 first round draft pick, cornerback Kyle Fuller, has spent some time playing with starters during OTAs, but his status for the season is anything but certain.

"We're moving people around and he's one of the guys we're moving around," Trestman said. "Certainly we're excited and he has had a good camp. He's getting work but he has to earn his job."

bschuster@tribune.com

Twitter @Schustee