If the Bears haven’t given up on Curtis Enis, they have a funny way of showing their devotion.
Funny, of course, unless you’re Enis, who is in distinct danger of fading away, the No. 5 pick of the 1998 draft inactive against his will, inching ever closer to a spot on injured reserve and, beyond that, perhaps not returning to the Bears next season.
Enis will miss his third straight game Sunday with a strained shoulder. He says it’s fine, but the club says it’s too weak to withstand game action, even though he has been practicing since last week.
If this were two years ago, Enis would be pouting. If it were last year, we’d never know because he wouldn’t have said anything. But this is a different Curtis Enis, the best version yet, ironically. Good attitude, the right weight, he says, and healthy until the shoulder thing, which is as mysterious as any plot twist in a sad, strange career.
“I feel fine, but it’s not my decision,” Enis said with a bemused look when asked if he felt ready to play.
Little has been within his control since he came to the Bears from Penn State, an enigmatic tailback in a fullback’s body, looking for all the world to be the next Jerome Bettis or Eddie George.
No one had much sympathy for Enis when he missed most of his first training camp while negotiating a laughable contract. And after he blew out his knee in his first NFL start in the 10th week of the season, the commonly held theory was that he was never in shape to begin with.
Strangely, it turned out to be his best year at 3.7 yards per carry, highlighted by a 94-yard day against a decent Pittsburgh Steelers defense the second week of that season. There were rookie tendencies, to be sure, the whole bouncing-outside business, but also enough signs that this was a kid who, as advertised, would develop into the kind of back that wears down defenses.
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Even in his most contemptible moments, Enis did as he was told after that rookie season, among other things figuring out he had to learn to block and losing more weight than he should have, the thought being that it would put less stress on the knee.
And when that didn’t work out, when it was obvious he was being given drastically different signals by the new coaching staff and that at 225 pounds he had virtually no weapons as a runner, he put the weight back on.
Now obviously trapped in an offense that won’t work with him and surely won’t work for him, he’s a sidelined fullback, his skills withering as fast as his marketability.
“This is nowhere near where I expected to be at this point,” Enis said quietly the other day. “You have to be prepared for anything in this league, but I didn’t expect this in my third year.”
Asked if he really knows what Enis is capable of, coach Dick Jauron ticked off all the player’s positive off-field attributes–the work ethic, the team mentality, the way he has handled adversity–before finally admitting, “No, not yet we don’t.”
Enis lost so much weight so fast last year that he lost muscle mass and strength along with it, Jauron said.
“Because of all the trauma physically [with his knee] and his weight fluctuating, I think his body is still adjusting,” he said.
Jauron said Enis caught one more bad break when his “personnel grouping,” which included John Allred at fullback, was disrupted by Allred’s shoulder and season-ending knee injury, thus forcing Enis into his role as lead blocker for James Allen.
Somehow, one suspects that would not serve as much consolation for Enis, who should be closely watching what the Bears do in their efforts to re-sign center Olin Kreutz.
Because Enis was their top pick, the Bears are required to give him the highest tender offer of any three-year veteran as a restricted free agent this off-season. But if Kreutz, a second-round pick, re-signs before the middle of February as the Bears wish, the team can give Enis a low tender offer of about $660,000.
At that price, the Bears can draft another running back and do what they want with Enis, who would be a bargain no matter how he’s used. If the Bears can’t sign Kreutz, however, they would be confronted with the dilemma of whether to give Enis the next tier of tender offer–$1.13 million.
At that price, another team would have to match the offer and give the Bears, with the right of first refusal, a first-round draft pick to acquire Enis, a highly unlikely scenario for an unproven player.
Even more unlikely is the possibility of any team giving the Bears first- and third-round picks, which is what they would have to do if the Bears gave Enis the highest tender offer of $1.5 million.
If they can’t re-sign Kreutz, the Bears will have to decide if Enis is worth $1.13 million. And with the way they have been using him this season, the answer is obviously no, No. 5 pick or not. If the Bears do decide to cast him off, get ready for a spiteful Enis gliding into town one day soon in another uniform, probably trimmed down to a more suitable 235 to 240 pounds and knocking the stuffing out of the Bears’ defense. How typical would that be?
Enis tried to be diplomatic when talking about his apparent fate.
“I like carrying the ball, but the way the offense is structured here, this is where they need me to be,” he said. “Hopefully I’ll get the chance to run the ball here. Right now I have to stay in shape.”
He says he has not reflected on his career.
“I’d go crazy if I did,” Enis said. “The big thing is I’m healthy now. I can contribute if they need me.”
At 1-6, the Bears obviously need something, and a running game geared toward their supposed featured back would be a good place to start.
“Adversity makes you stronger or it breaks you,” Enis said. “Given the opportunity, I’m going to make the most of it.”
Given the opportunity.