Latest Luther Burden III Injury Update: Rome Odunze And Another Sleeper Get A Fantasy Football Boost

The Chicago Bears got some tough news this weekend. Second-year wide receiver Luther Burden III is highly regarded as a potential breakout fantasy football star for the 2026 season. Burden came on strong late in his rookie campaign and has been garnering high praise from both his coaching staff and Chicago beat writers throughout training camp.

Chicago WR Luther Burden III is expected to miss the preseason due to the strained groin injury he suffered Saturday, but the Bears believe he should be back for the team’s regular-season opener vs. the Panthers, per sources. pic.twitter.com/o0w5V4oA8u
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 10, 2026

Unfortunately, this weekend, Burden suffered a groin injury that is expected to hold him out for the entirety of the preseason. The team is hopeful that he will be ready for Week 1. However, while his recovery timeline should have him ready for the start of the season, groin injuries are notorious for lingering and getting reinjured. This is something both Burden and the team will have to be very cautious with.

This injury opens the door up for Rome Odunze to pull away with the WR1 job, a job he could have possibly earned on his own with or without this injury. With Burden sidelined, we'd expect Kalif Raymond to see a significant boost in practice reps and preseason snaps.

Fantasy Impact

WR Luther Burden III, Chicago Bears

Burden is currently being drafted as a low-end WR2. We'd expect that this injury will drop him from the WR22 outside of the top 24 wide receivers. That leaves fantasy owners with the decision to either buy the dip and get Burden at a discount, or play it safe and avoid him because of the injury.

We always had Burden ranked as a WR3 or flex option, so this doesn't change all that much for us. Nevertheless, if you were hoping to rely on him as your WR2, we would advise investing in a safer option and still trying to get Burden as your WR3. Groin injuries are no joke, and they do tend to resurface. A setback could cost him months of the season.

WR Rome Odunze, Chicago Bears

We were in the minority, ranking Odunze higher than Burden even before this injury. Burden's groin injury makes that decision a whole lot easier. If we were investing in a Bears' wide receiver, even at equal value, we are going with Odunze. It was close before, but now it's a no-doubter.

WR Kalif Raymond, Chicago Bears

If Burden does end up missing regular season games because of this injury, we expect Raymond to be the biggest beneficiary. Once Burden is back on the field, Raymond is an essential non-factor; however, he could hold some sleeper flex value in any games Burden is forced to miss. Depending on how this injury is looking when you draft, Raymond could be drafted as a handcuff for Burden to use for a few weeks, or a pseudo streaming option selected at the end of your draft.

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