Chicago Bears: Nagy Offense Already Rescued One Failed Receiver

Some of the biggest talk this offseason for the Chicago Bears is what the future may hold for former 1st round pick Kevin White at wide receiver.

To date, they’ve gotten almost nothing in return for the 7th round pick they spent on him in 2015. His career boils down to five games, the rest being wiped away by three different season-ending injuries including two broken legs and a fractured shoulder blade. The guy has had the worst luck thus far. Hopes are high that perhaps a change in offensive schemes might give him a fresh start and maybe awaken that talent he flashed so much before the draft.

Needless to say, people are skeptical. The odds of a playing going through that much turmoil for three years to start his career and turning it around? It’s rare. Not impossible but hardly likely. Yet there’s reason to believe the new offense the Bears are installing might be the ticket to making it happen. People already saw it do the same elsewhere in Philadelphia.

Eagles fans had pretty much given up on Nelson Agholor by the start of 2017. They viewed him as another wasted pick by former head coach Chip Kelly, taken far too early in the 1st round. Then Doug Pederson arrived with a similar scheme he brought from Kansas City like Nagy and transformed the young receiver into a key playmaker for the eventual Super Bowl champions.

If Agholor can pull it off, why can’t White?

One of the reasons aside from injuries that White failed to take off was because he got stuck in an offense that simply wasn’t good. The Bears coaches didn’t do enough to get him in advantageous positions. Expect that to change under Nagy. The Eagles did a great job of solving this problem with Agholor, moving him to the slot where his particular talents could do the most damage. Results speak for themselves. He finished with 62 catches, 768 yards and eight touchdowns in 2017.

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White is more talented than Agholor is. He’s bigger, stronger and faster. Reports out of minicamps are his speed has returned. Quarterback Mitch Trubisky raves about him in practice. Defensive backs have reportedly struggled when lined up against him. That’s all fine and good, but it’s early. White has plenty of proving to do. Simply getting on the field will be hard. Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel and Anthony Miller want playing time too.

Still, White seems to have a new role to play. One that could pay off big as the season progresses.