Bears general manager Ryan Pace wants it known: Adam Shaheen is not a project.
The second-round pick out of Division II Ashland University may still be a bit raw, and Shaheen may face a steep curve initially in learning how to play tight end in the NFL. But Pace insisted over the weekend that he sees Shaheen having an impact as a rookie in 2017.
“We're excited about what he can add to our team right now,” Pace said.
The Bears fell in love with Shaheen's rare combination of size and athleticism during the pre-draft process. The massive tight end is 6-foot-6 and 278 pounds. Shaheen's background as a college basketball player — he played one season at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown — also proved appealing.
The Tribune recently reached out to Ashland tight ends coach Reggie Gamble for insight on Shaheen.
Early on when I met him (I) could tell he was intense and that he was an intent learner. From our very first conversation, I could tell he was all business. … But he only weighed 215 pounds when I first met him. He looked like a beanpole. I just told him, “Hey, man, come in and work. You're going to have two seniors in front of you, but this is an opportunity for you to hit the weight room, gain some weight and learn.” And he bought into that.
I've never seen anything like it. He went the basketball route first because he got tall first, but the amount of food the kid would eat was astounding. I'd go in the cafeteria and Adam would have four or five plates in front of him. You're watching him eat all this and it's like, “Hey, man, how are you not throwing up right now?”
But he'd do that and then he'd go work out, and he'd roll over to Chipotle later that night and pack more in. The amount of calories he was putting in was crazy, but it was never dessert or beer or anything bad. He was very dedicated to taking care of his body. So he'd be putting in 12,000 calories a day of just good, healthy food.
It was just the unusual combination of size and agility and his ability to catch the ball the way that he does. That added with his intelligence is a big deal. When you turn on his film, you see him in literally every spot on the offense except for quarterback or tailback — he's attached, detached, in the slot, out wide. That's why he's unique. He can do all those things. … There are kids (who) only come along every so often where coaches will have this answer: Who's your best player? Your smartest player? Your most unselfish player? That's Adam.
That's what he became, man. When he first got here — and he's probably not going to enjoy me sharing this — they called him “Stork.” He was just this tall, lanky, all-arms-and-legs kid. So they nicknamed him “Stork” for his first year-and-a-half. He told me, “Once I get to 260 (pounds), no one's allowed to call me ‘Stork' anymore.” So that was one of the impetuses for him to gain that weight: to lose that nickname. So “Baby Gronk” has been a welcome change for him.
He's a quiet, reserved kid, but he's opinionated. Overall, he's a good guy, very humble. There's never been any ego from him, from the time he was a third-teamer, non-starter and didn't play until all this happened. And when I saw him this past week, he's the same exact kid.
Since Adam has been here, he's calmed a lot of it down. He has very little social media presence. Since he's been here, it hasn't been a distraction to him at all. And I don't see that changing any time soon.
He is who he is and he has his beliefs, but he doesn't push those on anyone. And he's an open listener. He's a great person to debate with. He has his views and he finds facts to back up his views. I teach these kids to think for themselves but respect everyone's opinion. He does that.
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