Enderle makes NFL debut with Bears

Nathan Enderle stepped onto the football field in colors other than black and gold for the first time since his days as a Nebraska high school quarterback when the Chicago Bears hosted the Buffalo Bills in their preseason opener Saturday night.

After four seasons starting behind center for the Idaho Vandals, the NFL rookie quarterbacked the Bears' third team offense in a 10-3 win. Enderle replaced Jay Cutler's backup, Caleb Hanie, and completed 7 of 10 passes for 110 yards with one interception.

For Enderle, it's different not being the unquestioned starter - as was the case during most of his tenure with the Vandals - and being forced to battle for a roster spot. But he is just excited to get back on the field after the NFL's lockout negated spring camp and pushed back the start of training camp to July 30.

"It's great to be playing football and that's the thing I missed the most with the lockout going on - I just wanted to play football and they're telling me I can't," Enderle said. "But now I'm back and with a great team, and I'm excited."

The lost time, in which players weren't allowed to talk with coaches or sign contracts, has meant months of learning time is being condensed into less than a month and a half. Teams are scurrying to prepare for the regular season, which kicks off Sept. 8.

On July 27, Enderle finalized his four-year, $2.2 million contract ($170,000 of which was guaranteed, according to the Chicago Tribune) and went straight to work.

"We missed out on a couple of summer opportunities as far as learning the offense, getting into it, knowing the guys, having the coach look at our technique before real practice starts," Enderle said. "We missed out on that, but we kind of knew that was going to happen from the start."

The rigors of the NFL have been an adjustment. After Monday's practice, the quarterback expressed his fatigue to his Twitter followers, writing "Never wanted to sleep in a dorm room bed so badly."

It's not just the intense practices. It's also the constant studying and cramming, trying to lock down a complex playbook designed by offensive coordinator Mike Martz, architect of St. Louis Rams' high-powered and Super Bowl winning offense in 1999.

"It is a job now and you are expected to get some work done," Enderle explained. "I have homework every night as far as studying the playbook and trying to get stuff figured out as far as my reads in this offense.

"That's been a struggle after coming out of an offense that I knew so well after all the years I played in it."

Enderle said the general concepts at the NFL level are the same, but those concepts must be learned out of multiple formations to keep defenses guessing.

"You really have to know it in and out," he said. "You have to be so precise in everything you do. One step here or there can make the difference between an interception and a completed pass. You've really got to hone in and you can't have any missteps."