Bears 2nd-year players poised for a breakout season
With the 2016 NFL Draft nearly a month in the rear-view mirror and the hysteria that fanned the media’s flame now cooling to ashes, let us shift our focus to other prospects on the Chicago Bears roster.
In varying capacities, the Bears’ 2015 draft picks got their feet wet last season. Players like Jeremy Langford and Eddie Goldman capitalized on their respective roles last season and excited fans with their potential. Others prompted a more obscure optimism.
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Which of these players are going to make noise for Chicago this season?
WR Kevin White
Kevin White’s story is well publicized. He suffered a season-ending injury before last season started, and now, he is supposedly back to full strength. Being the Bears’ top draft choice in 2015, White was expected to make up for a chunk of the production lost when All-Pro Brandon Marshall departed last offseason. That obviously did not happen.
Now is the time for Bears fans to get excited for Kevin White all over again. White is as highly touted as any receiver I can remember coming into the NFL. As long as his injury does not have lasting effects, and purportedly it will not, the sky is still the limit for him.
C Hroniss Grasu
After being selected in the third round, Grasu started eight games for Chicago last season. Grasu was serviceable, but the run game was not as efficient in his half of the season.
The Bears brought in competition for the 2nd-year center in free agency (Ramirez, Larsen) and in the draft (Cody Whitehair). If Grasu can win the starting job, it should be a testament to his improvement and ability, not a testament to a lack of competition or talent on the Bears’ offensive line.
S Adrian Amos
With Antrel Rolle’s release a few weeks ago, Amos is the lone returning starter at safety for Chicago in 2016. Outside of the Chicago faithful, Amos is a relative unknown. He is a freewheeling, hard-hitting safety who does his best work in run support.
With Jerrell Freeman and Danny Trevathan corralling ball carriers at the second level, Amos will have the opportunity to play more freely. I expect that “Hulk”, as he was known at Penn State, will become more of a playmaker for Chicago this season.
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