March 10--With a brand new hat on backwards and a Chicago Bears golf shirt buttoned to the top, Danny Trevathan stepped up on a dais at Halas Hall, happy to be joining his new team. Among the many things that had Trevathan giddy about his new football home was a reunion with John Fox, the coach who drafted him in 2012 in Denver and helped jumpstart his development.
Said Trevathan: "He was always in my ear, telling me 'Danny no matter where you come from, you can go places, man. Sixth-round draft pick. People overlook you. But you're here now, make a name for yourself.'"
Next to Trevathan, 6-foot-6, 316-pound right tackle Bobby Massie described his own game.
"I'm nasty in the run game," he said. "In the pass game, I'm efficient."
The Bears made Trevathan and Massie the headliners of their 2016 free agent class on Wednesday. Trevathan signed a four-year deal worth up to $24.5 million with $12 million guaranteed. Massie's pact with the Bears is for three years and $18 million with $6.5 million guaranteed.
And on Thursday, at the ceremonial introduction of the two players at Halas Hall, there was plenty of feel-good to go around. Here are a few quick highlights from a news conference featuring the Bears' two newcomers.
TREVATHAN
On how much Fox's presence in Chicago influenced his decision to sign here ...
"It played heavily. Especially, going back to him giving me my first opportunity to play, coaching me and helping me to want to be great. That definitely helped me getting here."
On his assertion after last month's Super Bowl that this past season's Broncos defense was better than the '85 Bears ...
"I was in the moment then, it's not my place to speak on that, I wasn't there back with the '85 Bears, but it's just an honor to be mentioned among names like that, alongside a great defense like that. It's not my place to say where we fit, but it's my job to continue to play great and make my name available with those."
On what these Bears need to again become a playoff contender ...
"I see a lot of hustle, attitude. And I see a lot of ambition in these guys. That's stuff you can work with. And I feel I fit great with this defense. I know some faces around here. I've met some of the guys. I feel like these guys are ready to push it to the next level. My job is to do whatever I need to do to help them get over that (hump)."
MASSIE
On joining forces up front with friend Kyle Long ...
"We've been talking about this for the past two weeks. He's been in my ear, trying to get me to come to Chicago and recruit me and things and once I finally did give him notice that I was coming, he was screaming and shouting on the phone, he was real happy to hear that."
On being part of a significant turnaround over the past three seasons with Bruce Arians and the Cardinals ...
"We weren't used to winning. With the change in the coaching staff (in 2013), we won 10 games. We became hungry. Winning is contagious. Once you start winning, you don't want to go back to losing. All we need is a little taste here. Gotta get back to the top."
