Colston Loveland is Bears' top training camp headline (but fans shouldn't worry)

For the Chicago Bears--and 31 other NFL teams--the start of training camp is almost here.

The return of football is imminent, and one of the most exciting aspects for any fanbase during late-July is seeing all of the newly-acquired players suit up in jerseys and pads for essentially the first time.

For the Bears, one of the most exciting and highly anticipated newcomers is tight end Colston Loveland, whom the team drafted with the tenth overall pick just three months ago. Unfortunately, it may still take some time before the former Michigan Wolverine national champion is fully back to his old self on the field, either in practice or in games.

Biggest training camp story for Bears is Colston Loveland's injury recovery

Currently, Loveland is recovering from an offseason surgery to repair an AC joint injury in his right shoulder. Initially sustaining the injury last September, Loveland played his entire final collegiate season with the ailment, and it does not appear that it will have any long-term effects on his career (at least, the Bears did not think so when they made him the team's highest drafted tight end since Mike Ditka in 1961).

Still, the tight end was not a full-go in rookie minicamp earlier this summer, and his status remains somewhat of a question mark moving forward. In fact, ESPN's Ben Solak listed the 21-year-old's shoulder as one of the "five injuries to monitor" in a recent preview of NFL training camp storylines.

Loveland, as Solak noted, has the luxury of not being the team's top-listed tight end, but is rather expected to split and share reps with incumbent starter Cole Kmet. Still, the hope is for the Michigan product to ingratiate himself into Ben Johnson's office quickly, and a lack of summer reps might make that slightly more difficult. Rest assured, Loveland has been an active participant thus far, despite his current physical limitations.

"The recovery went (well)," Loveland said in an interview with NBC Chicago. "The mental reps have been really good. Just making sure I'm diving in the playbook, asking questions."

Gaining familiarity with the playbook is certainly important for a rookie, but perhaps even more essential is fostering the interpersonal relationships that comprise a team.

"One big goal is just meshing as a team," Loveland said. "Just continuing to create those relationships and build that trust within the teammates, the staff, the coaches, that's probably the most important thing going into camp."

There is still no definitive date in which the Bears expect Loveland to be a full-go, and the team will likely be somewhat conservative with a player that doesn't address an immediate need. Nonetheless, his health, progress and availability will almost certainly headline the topics of interest throughout the Bears' camp and pre-season.