With a new coaching staff comes a new playbook and offensive scheme. The Chicago Bears are entering a season with a new regime and expectations are high to improve and improve quickly. Jay Cutler is under plenty of pressure this upcoming year and is looking to make adjustments during training camp. However, injuries are becoming a threat to that effort as both Alshon Jeffery and Kevin White nurse health issues to start the season.
The Bears have yet to get a proper look at their first-round draft pick. After trading away Brandon Marshall, White joined the Bears as the second receiver taken off the board with high expectations placed on his shoulder. However, his start in the league is not off to a good start as the receiver deals with a shin issue keeping him out of practice. According to head coach John Fox, White is day-to-day, but the team has no idea when he might return to the field.
"I'm looking at it day-to-day. I can't predict," Fox said, via ESPN.com. "Sooner rather than later is what I hope, but that's just a hope. I think at the end of the day I prefer for him to be out there, but I've seen guys miss time and have the seasons of their lives. I'm not going to try and define him; he's going to have a chance to do that himself. I think he's making headway. Like I said, he was on the shelf for six weeks. It's a conditioning issue where we want to build up the soft tissue to the point where he can come back out and play football rather than just throwing him out there."
Jeffery is also nursing an injury issue. According to ESPN.com, the wide receiver who is now the No.1 target for Cutler was sitting on the sidelines with a sprained AC joint. Fox told the media that he does not believe the injury is serious, but it certainly represents another setback for the developing offense.
Until White and Jeffery return, the pressure is on Eddie Royal to step up and be a target for Cutler. Signed in the offseason, Royal is expected to be inserted to the slot position while Martellus Bennett takes care of the middle. Matt Forte is back as the top rusher for both the Bears and the league. Forte is predicted to pick up right where he left off last season which is good news for Chicago who is trying to stay more balanced this season.
