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Durkin: Marshall Uncertain About Future In Chicago

By Dan Durkin-

(CBS) If it were up to Brandon Marshall, he would stay in Chicago and retire as a Bear. The issue is, it's not up to Marshall, a truth he is fully aware of.

Marshall and his wife Michi were at Tilden Career Community Academy on Chicago's South Side on Wednesday morning to discuss his purpose of spreading mental health awareness. They also announced how they're giving back to the community by donating $50,000 to the mental health awareness program at Ann & Robert H. Lurie's Children's Hospital of Chicago.

Despite the commitment to Chicagoland, Marshall isn't sure if he'll be receiving the same gesture from the Bears' new regime.

"I definitely love Chicago, but I definitely understand it's a business on both ends," Marshall said. "For me, I want to win. The organization wants to win. Mrs. McCaskey wants to win. So, definitely aligned there. But there's a business side on both ends and I get that."

The business end with Marshall is that his 2015 base salary of $7.5 million becomes fully guaranteed on March 12, two days after the 2015 league year begins. Thus, if the Bears were to decide to cut Marshall prior to that date, the team would save $3.95 million in cap space and $7.7 million in cash.

Marshall is pending a physical today to check the progress on his cracked ribs and an injured lung, which cut short a tumultuous, injury-plagued season.

Even so, Marshall indicated that all of his interactions with new general manager Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox have been positive. Throw in his existing relationship with new offensive coordinator Adam Gase -- who was Marshall's wide receivers coach in 2009 in Denver -- and he feels downright comfortable about his place within and the direction of the organization.

"I met with Ryan Pace, I met with coach Fox (on Jan. 21)," Marshall said. "I was up there actually yesterday, talking with coach Gase, he was my wide receivers coach (in Denver in 2009). So we did a lot of reminiscing on the Denver days. He's an awesome dude, I think Chicago's really going to love him. He's a man's man. He's awesome. Looking forward to working with him."

Yet, just moments later when asked if he thought he would be back with the team, Marshall flat out said, "I don't know."

On Tuesday, it was reported that Pace and Fox may view Marshall as more of a part of the problem than the solution, according to Sports Illustrated's Don Banks.

Marshall took heat for the decision he made to further his media career last season, but he was clear that he intends to continue as a panelist on Showtime's "Inside The NFL" program, which airs in New York. He flew out on Tuesday, the Bears' off-day, to do the show last season.

"Like it was last year, it was a team decision," Marshall said. "I presented it to them, I wanted to do it the right way because I knew how big of a deal it would be. I invest so much in my body, I don't think people understand how I take care of myself.

"I'm up in the air at 6 (a.m), I'm back in the city (Chicago) at 4 (p.m). So I presented it to them and they had some concerns. But they said, 'We trust you, and you know how to take care of your body. Just make sure you have an out just in case you get hurt, or injured, so you can do what you need to do here.' So that was some of their concern. Then they said, 'At the end of the day, it's your decision.'

"So it will be the same way with my new coach. We'll sit down and I'll tell them not just about Showtime, but everything I do, from my foundation to what I want to do off the field, from a major level."

Who Marshall's new coach will be in the next month is anyone's guess at this point.

Dan Durkin covers the Bears for CBSChicago.com and is a frequent contributor to 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter at @djdurkin.

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