The preseason plan: Develop “Secret Weapon White”
There were a few storylines heading into preseason for the Chicago Bears, but perhaps none as exciting as Kevin White. Bears fans have had to do their fair share of waiting to see White on the field after missing his rookie season due to injury. The wait was agonizing, but fans quickly regained their excitement when reports of White’s physicality and speed began to spread. Stories of how White was humiliating the starting Bears cornerbacks became more and more common throughout July and August. Finally, a healthy Kevin White was going to make the wait worthwhile when he hit the field for the preseason. At least, that’s what everyone thought.
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Through preseason three games, White has only hauled in 3 catches for 12 yards. It’s a far cry from the performance that fans wanted. The Bears’ offense barely utilized intermediate routes throughout the entire preseason. The only routes that White and most Bears have ran so far are screens and quick outs. For a receiver who has been branded as a deep threat with both speed and size at his disposal, it’s been frustrating to watch White be held back so far. However, it has all been part of the plan from the Bears’ perspective.
This isn’t the first time that the Bears have held back a high profile receiver in the preseason. It wasn’t too long ago when Alshon Jeffery was making his NFL debut in August of 2012. While Jeffery has a solid first two games by racking up 97 yards, the coaches all but sidelined him for the second two games where he only caught one pass for 9 yards. When the regular season came, there was little to go off of in regards to tape on Alshon Jeffery as he recorded 3 catches for 80 yards and a touchdown in his week 1 debut. In his first 5 games as a rookie, Jeffery logged 184 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns on an offense that ran the ball religiously and had Brandon Marshall hogging most of the targets.
Did Alshon Jeffrey do more in his “rookie” preseason than Kevin White? Yes. However, the principle still remains the same. Teams truly don’t know what to expect from White. When other teams know about as much as the average fan, it should go down as an accomplishment. We know White could devastate teams on seam, and crossing routes. Of course Bear fans wanted to see that come to fruition in preseason, but a quiet Kevin White was the plan all along. For the first time in a long time, the Bears have a secret weapon at their disposal. Defenses will already be tasked with handling a top 5 receiver in lotion Jeffery, and Kevin White will be waiting on the other side of the offense ready to strike.
Come September 11th, Secret Weapon White will be ready to strike in Houston, and it’s all because of what the Bears set up in the preseason.