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Biography
Kevin Romone White Jr. (born June 25, 1992) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at West Virginia and was drafted seventh overall by the Chicago Bears in the 2015 NFL Draft.
A top prospect coming out of college, White suffered a season-ending shin injury during his first training camp and missed his entire rookie season. The following year he only managed to play four games before being put on season-ending injured reserve (IR) with another injury to his left leg, and during his third season fractured his shoulder blade in the season opener, again resulting in him being placed on IR. He became a free agent following the 2018 season, and was signed by the Arizona Cardinals before being eventually released.
High school career
White played high school football at Emmaus High School in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, which competes in the East Penn Conference.
College career
After graduating high school, he attended Lackawanna College for two seasons before attending West Virginia University. In his first season at West Virginia in 2013, he started nine of 11 games and had 35 receptions for 507 yards and five touchdowns. White returned his senior season in 2014 as a starter. He finished the season with 109 receptions for 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was named an All-American by numerous publications and was a finalist for the Fred Biletnikoff Award.
College statistics
| Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | GP | Rec | Yards | TDs |
| 2013 | West Virginia | 10 | 35 | 507 | 5 |
| 2014 | West Virginia | 13 | 109 | 1,447 | 10 |
| College Totals | 23 | 144 | 1,954 | 15 | |
Source:
Professional career
White was considered one of the two best wide receivers of the 2015 class, together with Amari Cooper. In most mock drafts, he was projected to be a top 10 pick, and several analysts predicted that he would be chosen by the Oakland Raiders with the fourth pick of the 2015 NFL Draft, which was ultimately used by the Raiders to draft Cooper instead.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2 ⁄8 in (1.90 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | 32 ⁄8 in (0.83 m) | 9 ⁄4 in (0.23 m) | 4.35 s | 1.53 s | 2.54 s | 4.14 s | 6.92 s | 36 ⁄2 in (0.93 m) | 10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) | 23 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine | ||||||||||||
Chicago Bears
White was drafted by the Chicago Bears with the seventh overall draft pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. On May 6, 2015, White signed a four-year, $15 million contract, including a $10 million signing bonus.
While participating in the Bears off-season program, White received a minor injury to his shin that held him out of 11 training camp practices and the 2015 pre-season opener. Shortly after returning, Bears general manager Ryan Pace announced on August 15, 2015 that White had suffered a stress fracture in his shin while participating in organized team activities that would require surgery. On August 23, 2015, White had a steel rod inserted into his left tibia and was placed on the Bears physically unable to perform (PUP) list. White did not play a single game during his rookie season of 2015.
After playing the first four games in the 2016 season, it was announced on October 5, 2016 that White had fractured the fibula in his left leg, the same leg he had injured the year before, and that he has been placed on injured reserve.
White was a starter in the Bears' 2017 season-opener against the Atlanta Falcons. However, he fractured his left shoulder blade in the game. He recorded only two receptions for six yards during the game. White was placed on injured reserve for the third straight year on September 10, 2017.
On May 2, 2018, the Bears declined White's fifth-year option. On October 21, 2018, with the Bears trailing the New England Patriots 38–31 late in the game, White caught a 54-yard Hail Mary pass from QB Mitchell Trubisky as time expired. However, he was stopped one yard short, ensuring a Bears loss.
Arizona Cardinals
On March 15, 2019, White signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals. He was released on August 21, 2019, as part of training camp roster trims and a lingering hamstring injury.
Personal life
White has two younger brothers, Ka'Raun and Kyzir, who both played football at West Virginia. Kyzir is a linebacker who currently plays for the Los Angeles Chargers.