Former CFL star quarterback Henry Burris returning to the NFL’s Chicago Bears

CHICAGO — Henry Burris is rejoining the Chicago Bears.

The former CFL star was added to head coach Matt Nagy’s staff Friday as part of the Bill Walsh diversity coaching fellowship. Burris spent the 2002 season as a quarterback with the Bears.

Last week, the 45-year-old native of Spiro, Okla., was named a first-ballot selection into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. The six-foot-one, 190-pound Burris played 20 pro seasons, 18 in the CFL with the Calgary Stampeders (1997-99, 2005-11), Saskatchewan Roughriders (2000, 2003-04), Hamilton Tiger-Cats (2012-13) and Ottawa Redblacks (2014-16).

Burris also spent time in the NFL with both the Green Bay Packers (2001) and Chicago.

Burris appeared in five Grey Cups, winning three (1998, ’08, ’16) and being named the MVP twice (2008, ’16). The CFL’s most outstanding player on two occasions (2010, 2015), Burris amassed 63,639 career passing yards and 373 TD passes — both third all-time.

Burris retired shortly after leading Ottawa to a thrilling 39-33 overtime Grey Cup upset win over Calgary in Toronto in 2016. He threw for 461 yards and three TDs despite suffering a knee injury during warmups.

The Bill Walsh diversity coaching fellowship was formed in 1987. The objective of the program is to allow participants to spend time with NFL clubs during training camp, off-season workouts and mini-camps in order to gain experience and “ultimately gain a full-time NFL coaching position.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2020

The Canadian Press