Bears have decisions to make with wide receivers

Now that the Bears are entering the offseason, it’s time to evaluate how each position group did over the past season and start looking ahead.

Here’s a look at the wide receiver room.

Wide receivers

Returning players: Rome Odunze, DJ Moore, Luther Burden III, Jahdae Walker, Maurice Alexander, JP Richardson

Free agents: Olamide Zaccheaus, Devin Duvernay

Looking back: The 2025 Bears receiving corps was the team’s deepest in recent memory. That depth played out for much of the season as different players stepped up at different moments for quarterback Caleb Williams.

Three Bears wide receivers finished with at least 600 receiving yards, but rookie tight end Colston Loveland led the team with 713 receiving yards. Moore led the wideouts with 682, while Odunze had 661 and Burden added 652.

Odunze entered the year with the expectation of becoming the Bears No. 1 receiver in his second season. He seemed on track to do so after a good start with five touchdown catches in his first four games.

But Odunze’s production tapered off, mostly because of a lingering foot injury that forced him to miss the last five games of the regular season. Odunze still led the team with 90 targets despite playing 12 games but had one touchdown catch in his final 10 games, including the playoffs.

“At the end of the day, we all play with different injuries and different things that we go through, so I’ve got to step through and proceed to be a catalyst to this team’s success throughout those things, and I don’t feel like I did that well enough this season,” Odunze said. “It’s going back to the drawing board and trying to look at some things with my routine or maybe my preparation that I can change so I can be the player I need to be for this team.”

Both Moore and Burden stepped up in Odunze’s absence. Moore finished with a career low in receiving yards but played through various injuries and made critical touchdown catches down the stretch and in the playoffs. Burden also proved that he was worth the second-round pick in April with his precise route running and ability to create yards after a catch.

Zaccheaus was involved early in the season as the rookies learned the offense but lost targets after some key drops midway through the year. Walker came through with a few big catches down the stretch.

What’s next: The biggest offseason storyline facing the wide receiver room is what Poles and Johnson decide to do with Moore.

Moore will start the first year of his four-year extension that he signed in 2024 this year. He’ll have the Bears’ largest salary cap hit at $28.5 million to go along with a roughly $35.5 million dead cap hit, according to Spotrac. That dead cap hit fluctuates depending on whether the Bears decide to cut or trade Moore before or after the NFL’s June 1 deadline.

Chicago will need to make some tough decisions as they look to clear up salary-cap space to improve other areas of the roster. Moore’s effort drew criticism on an overtime interception in the team’s NFC divisional matchup. Burden also appears to be the heir apparent to Moore’s role after a good rookie season.

But Moore played a pivotal role in the team’s success this season. He served as a leader for the Bears, playing through various injuries and making critical catches that helped Chicago get as far as it did.

“We got a lot of decisions to make and figuring that out,” Poles said. “I think what stood out about DJ this year is the level of toughness rubbed off on our team. Guys if they were dinged up, like they almost had to go because DJ was going. He was able to fight through a lot. Got a lot of respect for him.”

Whatever the Bears decide to do with Moore, they’ll need more growth from their other receivers. Odunze will try to take a big step in his third season and become more dependable after the team selected him with the No. 9 overall pick in 2024. Burden should continue to improve too.

Chicago might bring back Zaccheaus and Duvernay depending on what the price is. Duvernay would likely be higher on the Bears’ priority list given his kickoff and punt returning abilities.