Where was Chicago Bears tight end Adam Shaheen on Sunday?

The 3-8 Chicago Bears continue to stall the progress of their young, inexperienced players. It showed on Sunday with Adam Shaheen

The Chicago Bears sit at 3-8. Even at 3-7, and heading into Philadelphia, most people with realistic views knew where this season was going. The rationale at this point should be simple. The optimistic approach to being out of the playoff hunt with five or six games to go means that there are five or six games that you can play inconsequential football and experiment with what you have. This should mean giving the youngest players still on their rookie contracts the priority of playing time.

Coming into Sunday rookie tight end Adam Shaheen was progressing well. He had been given a chance at playing time with injuries to Dion Sims and Zach Miller, and he was taking advantage. He proved as a blocker, a player who can go over the seam, run with the ball and make an impact in the red zone, as his week 11 performance yielded a career day with four receptions for 41 yards and a touchdown. He was still raw, but Shaheen was showing his upside in every aspect.

With Dion Sims back in the lineup, the Bears had a tough decision to make. Rumors were that Shaheen’s playing time had warranted a stay in the lineup. As mentioned, what do they have to lose? However, by the end of their week 12 game, Shaheen was third amongst tight ends in snaps played. He played

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just 17 snaps, 31% of the offensive snaps.

Shaheen is not going to get better watching Daniel Brown run routes. This is stalling the progression of a second round pick for the sake of seniority. If the Bears are going to lose they could at least try to think about the future. Of course, they are even struggling to lose the right way.

The 3-8 Chicago Bears continue to stall the progress of their young, inexperienced players. It showed on Sunday with Adam Shaheen

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