Luther Burden's Year 2 Leap Could Make or Break the Bears' Passing Game

Luther Burden faces major pressure after the Bears traded DJ Moore, and his Year 2 leap could determine how far Caleb Williams and Chicago go.

Chicago Bears wide receiver Luther Burden III. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

When the Chicago Bears sent DJ Moore packing in a trade with the Buffalo Bills, it immediately put a lot more pressure on Luther Burden going into his second year in the NFL.

While Moore was disappointing the last two years, and especially in 2025 when he posted a career-low 682 yards, the veteran was still a key cog in Chicago's offense and in quarterback Caleb Williams' group of pass-catchers.

He also made the Bears less reliant on their impressive young duo of Burden and Rome Odunze, who the jury is also still out on as he enters his third NFL season.

Now, the Bears are going to need more out of Burden and Odunze, who will play key roles in the progression of Caleb Williams and an offense that will be the biggest factor in the Bears breaking their two-decade streak of not making back-to-back postseason appearances.

The Bears being able to replicate or improve upon what they did on offense last year will be the deciding factor in getting back to the playoffs, and the defense will determine how far the Bears advance beyond that.

Burden came on strong in the second half of 2025, finishing with 652 receiving yards and two touchdowns. With Moore out of the way, Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski expects the 2025 second-round pick to take a leap in Year 2.

"The Bears could confidently move Moore (and his contract) knowing that Burden can step in and be as effective," Sobleski said. "Chicago's offense, specifically quarterback Caleb Williams, should keep rolling along with Burden serving as a bigger part of the unit," he added.

Luther Burden hype train already loading

Chicago Bears wide receiver Luther Burden. | David Banks-Imagn Images

Burden already had a ton of hype surrounding him going into the 2026 campaign, but head coach Ben Johnson only added to it.

"He's exactly what we thought we were getting out of the draft last year," Johnson said of Burden earlier this offseason, per Larry Mayer of ChicagoBears.com. "This guy is a dynamic playmaker. He's got some of the best run-after-the-catch in the game right now. I really believe that. We've got to continue to get the ball in his hands as often as we possibly can."

When you see just how high Johnson is on Burden, it's easy to see why the Bears were so comfortable trading Moore and not making another significant addition at the wide receiver position.

It's very clear Johson and the Bears are expecting the Year 2 leap from Burden that just about everyone else is.

Chicago's shaky WRs room

Chicago Bears wideout Zavion Thomas. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Another reason Burden's Year 2 leap is crucial is because of the uncertain situation the Bears have at wide receiver.

Behind Burden and Odunze, both of whom have something to prove in their own right, the Bears have Kalif Raymond, Scotty Miller, Jahdae Walker and rookie Zavion Thomas.

The concern with that quartet is Raymond and Miller haven't been productive in recent years and Walker and Thomas are unproven, so there's no telling what to expect from them.

That's especially true for Thomas, who has to overcome what will be a difficult process in learning head coach Ben Johnson's offense.

"So this is a tough system. It’s going to be a challenge for him to break through quickly (on offense)," general manager Ryan Poles said of Thomas). "But we’re going to open that competition up for all of these guys coming in. I think we feel really good about the return ability that he has. And then he’ll be with the rest of the guys to learn the offense, how does he do that, how fast does he come along? We all talk to our receivers and it’s a challenging system."

"So, maybe that role starts small and grows over time. But I don’t want to put a cap on that. If he comes in and downloads fast and he’s up and running, we’ll see what happens," Poles added on Thomas.

The Bears are going to need at least two of those guys to step up and provide some support for Odunze and Burden. A failure to do so will only add to the pressure the young wideouts are already facing.