After an extremely disappointing 2014 season where they went 5-11, the Chicago Bears were awarded with the seventh overall pick of the 2015 NFL Draft. They selected wide receiver Kevin White with that pick, who has a chance to be a big-time impact player.
With his impressive combination of size, speed, strength and natural athletic ability, White has incredible upside. He has legitimate ability to become a star at the NFL level.
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On Tuesday, the Bears began their three-day mandatory minicamp. According to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune, the talented rookie sat out the practice session with an undisclosed injury.
“Everybody’s day-to-day with me,” head coach John Fox said when asked whether he expects White to be at practice later this week. “I’ll meet with the medical people and we’ll make that call, and he’ll be out here when he’s ready.”
Since nothing specific has been reported, I do not expect this injury to be anything too serious. Whether he is involved this week or not, I highly doubt this is anything that will hold him out of training camp. You can never be sure, but nobody seems to be overly worried.
Campbell also got a nice quote from quarterback Jay Cutler on White’s role on the team.
“Kevin is doing a good job for us, picking up the offense,” Cutler said. “He has a bright future.”
Despite the nice words on his ability, Cutler suggested that White is currently battling to be the fourth wide receiver on the team, behind Alshon Jeffery, Eddie Royal and Marquess Wilson. Jeffery is an established stud, White was never going to take snaps away from him, but Royal and Wilson being ahead of him is at least some-what of a surprise.
Dec 21, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears wide receiver Marquess Wilson (10) looks to get around Detroit Lions cornerback
Rashean Mathis(31) during the first quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Sure, Wilson has a lot of upside, and Royal can make a big impact for the Bears out of the slot, but neither player has the same raw combination of skills as White. That being said, both players are much more established on an NFL field. If White is going to see serious playing time as a rookie, he is going to have to earn it.
First things first, White has to deal with whatever injury is holding him back at the moment. Until then, it does not matter what he can do on the field.
White has seemingly unlimited upside. Once he has the opportunity to show off what he can do, I expect that he will soar past Wilson and Royal on the depth chart. Until then, he may actually be looking at entering the season in some sort of part-time role.
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