Chicago Bears: Could Kevin White situation mirror Kyle Fuller’s 2017?
By Ryan Heckman
With the Chicago Bears making an obvious decision regarding wide receiver Kevin White‘s fifth-year option, could his 2018 surprise us?
Most Chicago Bears fans wanted Kyle Fuller gone after his 2016 season. He was another Phil Emery pick wasted. The Bears should move on and cut their losses. He will never pan out to be the player he was supposed to be.
Then, 2017 happened.
What am I trying to say, here? Where am I going with this?
Here’s the deal: Everybody, including myself, has zero expectations for Kevin White this year — none. Actually, the only expectation I have is for him to inevitably get hurt again. Do I wish that upon him? Absolutely not.
But, let’s be honest — the Bears don’t have too much expectation laid out regarding White either. They proved that Wednesday when they declined White’s fifth-year option that would have paid him nearly $14 million in 2019.
That got me thinking…
Didn’t another recent fifth-year option player blow up? Ah, yes — it was Fuller.
The Bears won't pick up WR Kevin White's option for 2019, source says. Would've been for $13.9 million. So he's officially in his contract year. Bears CB Kyle Fuller was in a similar position last year and cashed in when he suddenly balled out.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) May 2, 2018
The magnificent Mike Garafolo might be on to something here. Ryan Pace has put together a receiving core that looks remarkably different than it did a year ago. He’s put in place a coach, in Matt Nagy, who understands offenses in the year 2018. He has hired a brand new training staff.
That last portion might be the most important to this conversation.
After seeing his first three years cut dramatically short due to injury, White needs all of the insight, advice and expertise he can get when it comes to keeping his body in top shape. Speaking of which…
Ran into the family of #Bears WR Kevin White, who is recovering from a shoulder injury. I asked how he’s doing, and his father sent me this: pic.twitter.com/75MUQ5HRfJ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 3, 2018
Let’s say that White can stay healthy. Depending on his training camp, he comes into the regular season as maybe the no. 2 option — that’s looking at things from a ridiculously positive perspective. On the low end, he’s behind Anthony Miller or Taylor Gabriel on the depth chart.
If he somehow stays healthy for an entire season, what could that look like? It’s clear he’s in even better shape than he was in college, and I know we all remember his West Virginia days.
One more out of hundreds to choose from…
Let’s put two and two together for a minute. If White’s only hiccup is staying on the field, and he’s in better shape than ever before, what could happen in 2018?
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Simply put: White could perform at a level that would force the Bears to pay up next spring, and I think Pace would be just fine with that.