In the remote village of Leone in western American Samoa out in the South Pacific, Gabe Reid grew up on an unspoiled stretch of paradise without shopping malls or traffic lights.
“We never had any street names either, so if someone asked you where you lived, you’d say, `Go down five coconut trees, and then to the left there’s a mango tree, and I live right behind there,”‘ the Bears tight end said with a laugh.
Making his way around the Chicago area has challenged Reid almost as much as making his way up the Bears’ depth chart. On his way to a speaking engagement one day last off-season, Reid took a wrong turn and wound up in Wisconsin before he realized it wasn’t the Lake County town where he was supposed to be.
“Coming to Chicago has been a big culture shock,” he said. “Everywhere here, I get lost.”
Reid has begun to find his way during a training camp in which his career has taken a new direction.
Injuries to the three tight ends ahead of Reid when camp started thrust the Brigham Young graduate into action with the No. 1 offense Monday. Starter Desmond Clark and backup John Gilmore remain out with pulled hamstrings, and regular Dustin Lyman joined the injury list with a sore right knee that required an MRI but detected nothing serious.
Reid, a much better receiver than blocker at 6 feet 4 inches and 260 pounds, has taken advantage by making plays such as the one-handed, over-the-shoulder catch he made of a Jonathan Quinn pass in the end zone during a team drill Monday morning. Since he was claimed by the Bears off the Tennessee Titans’ practice squad last November, Reid has displayed the type of hands and agility that have made several teammates comment on his potential in the right system.
That system might be the new Bears offense that allows the tight end to stretch the field vertically. Reid believes he’s ideally suited for the job description after spending four years playing in one of college football’s most innovative passing offenses at BYU.
“I couldn’t ask for a better window of opportunity,” Reid said. “Whether the guys who are banged up come back [Tuesday] or in a few days, I need to make an impression and keep that window open. I consider myself lucky.”
A Latter Day Saints mission to Santiago, Chile, in college impacted Reid in a way that he will never take his own success for granted. After his redshirt season at BYU, Reid helped build schools and repair homes for almost a year, sleeping on dirt floors and living off local delicacies such as cow tongue, intestines and “whatever they gave you.”
“It was voluntary and important for me to experience the way they lived there,” Reid said. “I grew as a person.”
He has discussed that growth with fellow BYU alum John Tait, the Bears offensive tackle who completed missionary work in Tennessee during his college days. While not wearing their beliefs on their jersey sleeves, both players find each other’s company comforting.
“It’s kind of like you’re family,” said Tait, who played with Reid’s brother, Spencer, at BYU. “It’s more of a lifestyle thing, not so much, oh this is what I believe and where I go to church on Sunday, it’s more a belief system that influences your actions. There’s a definite comfort level with Gabe.”
Reid credits that compatibility with helping him cope with the emotional pendulum of professional football. In two weeks, for instance, Reid has gone from wondering if he would make the team to running with the No. 1 offense. In two more, he knows he might be wondering again.
“When you have someone like John there with the same beliefs and perspective on life, it makes it easier to go through the stresses and pressures the NFL brings,” Reid said.
So does maintaining Reid’s sense of humor. One day after a recent practice, he approached center Olin Kreutz, a native Hawaiian, to test Kreutz’s ear on island music.
“I said, `Olin, do you remember this song?”‘ Reid said. “He just started laughing, then I sang it to him.”
So far this training camp, Reid has hit all the high notes.
