Chicago Bears: What should team do with Adam Shaheen?
By Usayd Koshul
As the Chicago Bears continue training camp in Bourbonnais, the team needs to think about their 2017 second-round pick.
When the Chicago Bears selected Adam Shaheen in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft, they drafted Shaheen based on his potential to be a great player. In fact, Shaheen’s potential was off the charts to the point where many thought that he’d be the next Rob Gronkowski.
However, Shaheen’s career with the Bears so far has been filled with more injuries than anything. Last preseason, Shaheen, injured his ankle and foot, an injury that would keep him sidelined for most of the 2018 season.
Now, this offseason, Shaheen has been dealing with multiple injuries and the preseason has yet to begin. He’s missed training camp over the last few days due to a sore back. Things are getting to the point where the Bears need to think about their future with Shaheen.
On one hand, it’d be easy to go ahead and say that the Bears should just part ways with Shaheen. Many think that Shaheen’s career is potentially beginning to look like Kevin White‘s, where Shaheen is unable to stay healthy but is looked upon as a guy who’s got tons of potential and a key part of the Bears future.
As of right now, it’d be unwise for the Bears to move on from Shaheen. He’s a guy who when healthy, has produced some excellent plays for the Bears. What Shaheen needs to do is get healthy.
Despite the fact that Shaheen went to a division two school, he’s still shown enough potential to the point where he can be considered a quality tight end. Additionally, at this point in time, the Bears tight end competition seems to be wide open for multiple reasons.
First, Trey Burton has failed to live up to his massive four-year, $32 million dollar deal that he signed last offseason. Second, behind Burton and Shaheen, the Bears don’t have many proven options. Bradley Sowell, Ian Bunting, and Dax Raymond all have little to no experience playing the tight end position at the NFL level.
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Where most want to see Shaheen gone, it’d be fair to give him one more season. If he gets injured again during the season or at some point next offseason, then it’s fair to think about cutting him. However, for now, the reality is that 2019 is essentially a make-or-break season for Shaheen as he tries to get his career back on track.