Briggs attended Franklin High School in Meadville, Mississippi, where he focused on playing basketball. As a senior, he received All-district honors. He also practiced track.
He accepted a basketball scholarship from the Copiah-Lincoln Community College. He decided to try out for the football team in his third year there. In 1989, he started all of the games at free safety, compiling 6 interceptions, while receiving All-JUCO and All-state honors.
In 1990, he accepted a basketball scholarship from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. The football coaching staff convinced him into changing sports. He played in the first two contests before being declared ineligible because of a class conflict. At the end of the season, the football program was suspended for 1991 by the NAIA, paving the way for Briggs and six of his teammates to walk-on at Texas Southern University, where the coach said he'd have to sleep on the floor because he didn't have an extra dorm room available.
As a senior, he began playing mostly in the nickel defense and on special teams. He became a starter at outside linebacker after the fourth game of the season, when a starter went down with an injury. He also combined the responsibilities of a safety and received All-SWAC honors. He recorded 42 tackles, 3 passes defensed, 2 sacks, one fumble recovery, one interception and one blocked kick. He was a teammate of future hall of fame player Michael Strahan.
Briggs was signed as a free agent by the Dallas Cowboys in 1995. He was released on August 27.[6] He was re-signed on September 21.[7] He played in 11 games, registering 9 special teams tackles and was a part of the Super Bowl XXX winning team. He wasn't re-signed after the season.[2]