Read Options: How long will it take for Kevin White to take off?

SHARE Read Options: How long will it take for Kevin White to take off?
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Bears WR Kevin White (AP).

Adam L. Jahns’ “Read Options” column appears in Pro Football Weekly, which is available Thursday or Friday in the Chicago Sun-Times, Daily Herald, Rockford Register Star, Northwest Herald, Kankakee Daily Journal, Peoria Journal Star and on ProFootballWeekly.com.

Find a talented receiver entering his third season and try to draft him. It’s a popular strategy for fantasy football because it used to be a fact of life for many receivers in the NFL.

Demaryius Thomas, Dez Bryant, Roddy White, Greg Jennings, Chad Johnson, Steve Smith and Reggie Wayne are just some of the receivers who broke out and became stars in their third campaigns.

And this brings us to Bears receiver Kevin White.

Is he heading down the same path as some of the aforementioned players? Is he going to require that much time? That much work?

Patience might not be a virtue for fans and talking heads, but it is for some front offices. And the Bears will be patient with White, who is essentially a rookie after missing all of last season following shin surgery.

Waiting until 2018 for big things from White might not be ideal. But again, White wouldn’t be the first to follow that path. Thomas and Bryant were certainly worth the wait.

White is learning his first NFL playbook and expanding his route-running. But he’s also in the process re-establishing all the athletic traits that made him a top-10 pick in the 2015 draft.

It’s all going to take time. It’s why offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains said he’s going to simplify routes and concepts for him.

It also doesn’t help to follow the 2014 draft class of receivers. It changed expectations for production.

There were 15 receivers taken in the first three rounds in 2014, including five in the first round. Those five receivers — highlighted by the emergence of Odell Beckham Jr. — averaged 70 catches, nearly 980 yards and more than eight touchdowns as rookies.

The Bears still need White to produce. It’s essential that he becomes a contributor in some capacity. It’s also important that he flashes his star-worthy qualities at times.

“He needs to just let plays come to him,” general manager Ryan Pace said during his pre-game interview on WBBM-780 AM on Monday night.

“Basically, this is like a rookie season for him. … Those plays will come. Kevin is going to get his chances. He just has to be ready for them.”

***

Can we wait and see what linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski, safety Deon Bush and cornerback Deiondre’ Hall become before ridiculing the Bears for passing over quarterback Dak Prescott three times in the fourth round?

Can we also wait to see what Prescott turns into as well?

We’re only two weeks into the season. Yes, there is a lot to like about the Cowboys’ fourth-round selection. But in a month from now, Prescott’s narrative could be very different.

Remember, quarterback Robert Griffin III was the future of Washington, until he wasn’t in major flameout fashion.

***

The competition at cornerback should intensify with Kyle Fuller expected to do more at practice this week after being inactive the first two games following knee surgery in the preseason.

Second-year cornerback Jacoby Glenn, though, has had strong moments starting in Fuller’s place.

Despite his slight frame, Glenn is a willing tackler, and he’s got a knack for getting his hands on passes. Glenn has broken up four passes in the first two weeks.

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