Bears WR White says he's 100 percent ready to play
There is no doubt in Kevin White's mind that he's completely over the shin splints that required surgery a year ago and robbed him of his entire rookie season.
“I don't even think about it,” the seventh overall pick in the 2015 draft said after Wednesday's organized team activities. “Move on. Play the game. I still try to stay on top of it in the treatment room a little bit, but I'm back to normal. One hundred percent. I'm really not focused on the leg too much.”
That's especially good news, considering the absence of the Bears' No. 1 wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, who continues to shun the voluntary portion of the Bears' off-season program.
Wednesday's workout was the second of 10 OTAs that the Bears will conduct before the full-team, mandatory minicamp June 14-16. Jeffery is expected to attend the only mandatory portion of the off-season program and to report with his teammates July 27 for the start of training camp.
But the 6-foot-3, 217-pound White is more concerned with getting himself prepared for his NFL debut than with Jeffery's absence.
“Of course everyone wants Alshon here,” White said. “That's his business. I just have to focus on myself, and I'm trying to get better.”
Jeffery received the franchise tag at the end of February that includes a $14.59 million, one-year contract. He missed seven games last season but still led the Bears with 54 catches and 807 receiving yards.
Jeffery was the only healthy Bear not to participate on Wednesday. Linebacker Pernell McPhee (arthroscopic knee surgery), defensive lineman Will Sutton (illness) and offensive lineman Tayo Fabuluje (illness) did not practice, although they have been active in the off-season program that began April 18.
White says he's been good to go since well before then, which he never doubted. That appeared obvious Wednesday, as White was able to outrun deep coverage on one play and later flash make-you-miss ability with stop-and-start quickness after catching a short pass over the middle.
But it's still been a long trip back, considering White's shin splints first surfaced during last year's OTAs.
“There were rough days,” he said. “(But) I knew I would get back to (this) point. It was just a matter of when. (It was) a couple months ago. I'm not sure exactly when, but I feel good now.
“Everything is full-go. So I try to put as much energy as I can into it and run as fast as I can in practice so I can look at the film, study it and work on it the next day.”
Although he's never even participated in an NFL training camp practice or a preseason game, White says just being at Halas Hall last year has helped him hit the ground running this year.
“It's a lot easier now,” he said. “Last year everything seemed so fast. It was really hard trying to learn the concepts because at West Virginia I stayed on one side (of the field) and everything was a hand signal.”
Watching veterans like Jeffery and Eddie Royal taught White how to be a pro and allowed him to work on the finer points of the game.
“Last year, not playing, I learned a lot from different kinds of guys, trying to be a technician,” White said. “Seeing other receivers and how Jay (Cutler) communicated to them, how Jay wanted it done. Being on the sidelines, I've seen a lot.”
White's been spending time off the field with Cutler as well, starting with a trip down to Vanderbilt with the other receivers to throw and catch earlier in the off-season.
“Being on the same page with the quarterback is everything,” he said. “Moving the chains on third down. There's a big difference between completing the ball on third down and punting on fourth down.”
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