The COVID-19 outbreak has changed everything we've come to know about training camp, but according to Matt Nagy, the Bears are going to have a physical summer regardless of social distancing.
“We want to be smart on this process," Nagy told reporters during a Zoom call on Wednesday. "But there's a balance of having that physicality, that we're going to be, we're going to freakin' get after it in this training camp. So, mindset-wise, when we're going and we strap it up and go live, and we hit and tackle, there's going to be a mindset that we're going to be a tough football team."
Finally, something that sounds like real football.
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Whether we'll actually see that level of physicality in training camp practices depends on how well the team can contain COVID-19. Running back Artavis Pierce and tight end Eric Saubert have already been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, which means they've either tested positive or have been in close contact with someone who has. General manager Ryan Pace expressed confidence in the team's social distancing plan on Wednesday.
You can read more about the Bears' COVID-19 plan here.
The physicality Nagy hopes to see will be limited to just 14 padded sessions that won't get started until August 17, at the earliest. Training camp will be highlighted by the upcoming quarterback competition between Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles, which has been complicated by the COVID-19 procedures and the elimination of all preseason games.