Any self-respecting Chicago Bears fan knows about Kevin White by now. The seventh overall pick of the 2015 draft. He was supposed to take over for Brandon Marshall who’d been traded to the Jets that off-season. There was so much potential. He had a big, thick 6’3″ frame and blazing 4.35 speed. The kid looked like a monster.
Sadly the story hasn’t had a happy ending. White suffered a fracture in his leg before he ever saw the field as a rookie. The next year he made it through four games before suffering a similar fracture in the opposite leg. Then, as if his luck weren’t bad enough, on opening day a big hit cause a fracture in his shoulder blade on opening day.
He’s fast become one of the biggest busts in recent Bears history. The fact it’s come due to injuries and not just poor play makes it sting all the more. Neither he nor the fans have gotten a chance to see what he can really do. The good news? He seems to still have allies in the building, with the newest one being his head coach.
Matt Nagy uncompromising in his belief Kevin White is salvageable
Few men are bigger believers in second chances than new Bears head coach Matt Nagy. He wouldn’t be where he is today without one. His football career was over 10 years ago. He was ready to get into real estate when an old friend gave him a chance to coach in Philadelphia. Nagy took it. A decade later he’s running his own franchise.
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So it’s only natural he’d have sympathy for someone like White. Yet it seems to go beyond that. In the short time they’ve been together, Nagy has become a believer.
“Yeah, you need to stack (practices),” Nagy said. “He needs to do that. There’s going to be those days where there’s a mental error that he has or several mental errors that he has or a couple dropped balls or a missed assignment. And that’s the mentality that we right now as a staff have with these guys. That’s OK.
He’s a kid (whose) confidence hasn’t been where it needs to be. But what I can tell you is that from what I’ve seen so far, if I was somebody that was coming into this building and facility that didn’t know anything about him, you’d never in a million years know it from what we’ve seen recently.”
VIDEO: KEVIN WHITE (@mrkevinwhite) making the catch in #Bears voluntary camp yesterday pic.twitter.com/KtGe49583Y
— PirateLife Football (@PirateLifeFF) April 18, 2018
It’s hard to take an optimistic view on White given what’s happened.
Still, he’s 25-years old and his legs have had two years to recover. Videos posted have him running with a speed and quickness he simply didn’t show last year. With a far superior offensive staff in place, led by Nagy, he may finally be in a position to get at least something from his vast athletic talent.
It also seems he’s forged a genuine connection with quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Being on the good side of the ball who decides where the football goes is never a bad thing. White has lots of competition this year. Far more than seasons past. At the same time, there isn’t as much pressure to perform. Maybe that’s what he needs now.
