Lance Briggs has some time to kill until training camp and he spent Tuesday’s chunk of it doing radio interviews.
As we shared earlier, Briggs threw some support behind running back Matt Forte during one of the interviews and then moved on to a more general overview of the 2012 Bears when he moved on to 670 The Score. Briggs was asked about the team’s offseason and said that he thinks the additions of Brandon Marshall, Michael Bush, first-round pick Shea McClellin and others have the team in strong position for the year to come.
“On paper, we look like a champion, but we have a lot of work to do before we can be called a champion,” Briggs said. “There were moves that were made in the offseason to bring in a lot of veteran (players). Of course, Brandon Marshall and Michael Bush just put us in a position where we’re able to transition that stuff onto the field to be a real contender.”
Calling them the champs on paper is going too far, but the Bears look like they should contend for at least a playoff spot. They were 7-3 before Jay Cutler’s injury started to sink the ship last season and they’ve addressed some of their big need areas this offseason. The Bears have their flaws, the offensive line comes immediately to mind, and then there’s the Forte issue.
While Briggs said he wouldn’t be upset about a holdout from the running back, an extended absence for Forte would make it harder for the Bears to live up to Briggs’ paper. He knows the offense, but there are plenty of past examples of players reporting late and having issues performing up to their previous levels as a result.