Chicago Bears News: the Kevin White Injury Saga and More
Good Morning and happy Sunday, Bear Goggles On readers! Soon enough these days will be filled with football and will return to “Sunday Fun-Day” status, but for now they’re nothing more than the last gasp of freedom before the work week begins. So enjoy your day and get it started right with Bear Dawn, your best source of Chicago Bears news.
The biggest news is obvious and unless you’ve been under a rock over the last 24 hours or so, you already know. The Chicago Bears top draft pick this year, wide receiver Kevin White, is set to undergo surgery for a fracture in his left shin. You can find a scoop on this from just about any media outlet, but we’ll keep you in-house for this one.
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We now know what has been going on with Kevin White the past few weeks. The admission by General Manager Ryan Pace of the injury to his top draft pick along with the subsequent announcement of the surgery and recovery timetable bring a form of closure to the situation. At least we don’t have to wonder anymore.
How this all played out, however, has gotten some interesting reaction. Something I alluded to in my piece (linked above) is the idea of trust. NFL teams have long been secretive and it’s expected, but this scenario would seem to encourage that we trust our eyes more, and the words of Bears management less.
Jon Greenberg of ESPN wrote a piece about this very topic, an impassioned take seemingly influenced by the heightened media restrictions around the Bears these days. Greenberg wrote that the Bears “had been obfuscating the truth on White’s injury all training camp, not very well I might add, culminating in White’s first bald-faced lies to the media Friday.”
“The Bears had been obfuscating the truth on White’s injury all training camp, not very well I might add, culminating in White’s first bald-faced lies to the media Friday.”
Greenberg went on to report Head Coach John Fox’s response to the firestorm around the Kevin White injury announcement. When asked why the Bears weren’t forthcoming about White’s shin from the beginning, the coach said “I don’t know. You guys figure that out.” The testy Fox then reminded the media horde that teams are only required to reveal the body part affected and he’s been doing it that way for 14 years.
Fellow ESPN writer Jeff Dickerson was caught up in the crossfire created by Greenberg’s piece after linking it in a tweet.
@DickersonESPN to write a whole article that bears are lying is B.S. get a life they have no responsibility to you. All pro teams hide
— icobod slipp (@sbush1112) August 15, 2015
Dickerson then reminded Twitter nation that he actually didn’t write the story, but also admitted in his 11 years covering the Bears — this is how they do it.
The Chicago Tribune’s David Haugh had a similar take on the situation. Seems like none of the individuals who cover the Bears for a living are happy with how this has shaken out. Hub Arkush of ChicagoFootball.com can be included in that group, although he does take time to point out that there were no injury concerns for White heading into the draft.
What does this all mean for us as fans? This season was and will be a transitional period for the Bears. Kevin White’s presence or lack thereof isn’t enough by itself to alter that course. Hopefully he’s able to come back this season and get some time on the field and if not, then we can just consider this a redshirt year and look forward to next year when he (and likely another high draft pick) can help the Bears be successful.
Jul 30, 2015; Bourbonnais, IL, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback
Jay Cutler(6) during practice at Olivet Nazarene University. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Moving on to other Bears news….
The Jay Cutler interception-less streak is over. We knew it would end at some point and, wouldn’t you know it, Shea McClellin was the guy to make it happen. Larry Meyer of ChicagoBears.com reports on that bittersweet topic.
Speaking of the embattled third-year linebacker, Jeff Dickerson comments here on how a confident McClellin survived his first preseason test. Apparently the communication device in McClellin’s helmet malfunctioned early on, forcing him to make calls via hand signals.
The first drive of the first preseason game is hardly a pressure cooker, so it’s hard to be overly impressed with this feat. Baby steps, I guess.
Do we have a possible shake up in the safety depth chart? Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune reported yesterday that rookie Adrian Amos was running with the first team defense at the expense of Brock Vereen. If one player could be singled out in that first preseason game for struggling, it would be Vereen, so this comes as no surprise.
The revolving door at safety continues to do just that, revolve. Here’s to hoping that Amos can wedge his foot in there and break the cycle.
That’s all for now. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, Bears fans. BEAR DOWN.
Next: Chicago Bears Offense: Stock Watch After First Preseason Game