Bears “Stock Up”: Luther Burden III makes his case for more play

The Bears' rookie receiver stepped up in Rome Odunze's absence, and the offensive line showed its reslience against a tough defense.

Dec 7, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland (84) celebrates a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Well, at least they came back and made it a game, right?

The Bears battled back in the second half but ultimately couldn’t pull off the comeback win over Green Bay, falling 28-21. 

But it wasn’t all bad. In fact, a few developments from this loss bode well for the future, including when these two teams meet again in two weeks.

Luther Burden III

We’ve been wanting to see what Burden could do in a starting role, and the young playmaker delivered. The rookie led the Bears in catches (4; tied with the team lead with Colston Loveland) and receiving yards (67) while taking over for the injured Rome Odunze. His day could’ve been bigger, too, if not for a few failed connections with Williams. But Burden’s arrow continues to point up, and he looks as if he could eventually be for the Bears what Jayden Reed is for the Packers—a dynamic, do-it-all playmaker you move heaven and earth to get the football to.

The offensive line

It was a rough first half for the Bears in all facets, but this unit owned the Packers for most of the second half. Green Bay knew Chicago wanted to run the ball down their throats and chew up clock, and they couldn’t stop it. There were even a few occasions where the running backs, especially D’Andre Swift, left yards on the table on plays that were well-blocked. All told, though, only giving up one sack against that aggressive Packers defense and pushing Green Bay around in the third and fourth quarter should give Bears fans hope for their next contest.

TJ Edwards

You forget how nice it is to have starting-quality linebackers until you lose them. Edwards’ return might not have jumped off the table on the stat sheet (4 total tackles) as he seemed to be on a snap count. But he made a few notable plays, knifing into the backfield at one point to trip Josh Jacobs up for a minimal gain. If nothing else, it’s good to have him back and playing well, as the Bears are coming up on a slate of teams that love running the football. 

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