After injuries in each of his first three seasons with the Bears derailed his career, Kevin White is confident that his first NFL touchdown will be the start of something special.
"It's just the beginning," the receiver said after his 29-yard TD reception from Chase Daniel helped lead the Bears to a 27-20 preseason win over the Chiefs Saturday at Soldier Field.
"I've been banged up. You know my history. It's been a long time coming. I always put in the work every offseason and hopefully this is the one that pays off."
White's touchdown came after he froze veteran cornerback Orlando Scandrick with a tantalizing double move that left the receiver wide open behind the defense.
"Once I gave him the move at the top and he fell for it, I knew it was over," White said. "Chase threw a dime ball and the offensive line gave him [time], so it was easy for [me]."
White has appeared in the Bears' last three preseason games, catching four passes for 48 yards. He intends to continue to contribute once the regular season begins in two weeks.
"Just do my job the best way I can," White said. "When my number's called, I want to be able to go make big plays like I know I can, and just have fun out there."
Shining star: White wasn't the only Bears receiver who stood out against the Chiefs. Rookie Javon Wims had four receptions for a game-high 114 yards and one touchdown.
The seventh-round draft pick from Georgia turned a short pass into a 54-yard gain, made a highlight-reel 7-yard touchdown grab and hauled in a 44-yard pass down the right sideline.
"I just tell myself that with every opportunity—whether it's blocking, whether it's on special teams—just try to make a play, just try to go out there and go 110 [percent]," Wims said.
The rookie receiver was pleased with his performance, but he felt it could have been even better had he been more detailed on certain plays. "Some areas I can improve at," Wims said, "but I think I had a strong performance. I was happy. I competed hard."
Roster move: The Bears on Sunday released veteran guard Earl Watford. The fifth-year pro signed with the team April 3. He spent his first four NFL seasons with the Cardinals, appearing in 42 games with 22 starts, after being selected by Arizona in the fourth round of the 2013 draft.
Watford played in 15 games with 11 starts for the Cardinals in 2016. He signed with the Jaguars as a free agent last March, but failed to make Jacksonville's 53-man roster.
The plan: Backup quarterback Chase Daniel applauded coach Matt Nagy's decision not to play most of the Bears starters in Saturday's preseason game against the Chiefs.
"All the starters wanted to play," Daniel said. "The starters, the twos and threes, really the whole team had a really good week of practice. So [the starters] were feeling confident going into the game. The competitiveness in them, they were a little down, but they understood the reasoning.
"The risk-reward, it's too much. You see a lot of guys around the league getting hurt in the third preseason game. [Nagy] felt like they had a really good week of practice, which I agree with him they did. Honestly, it was a good opportunity for the twos and threes, guys that may be on the bubble of a team, guys that may need to make an impression, and I felt like there were a number of guys that did that."
