Why The Bears Immediately Won The DJ Moore Trade

DJ Moore has watched his time with the Chicago Bears come to a close. In his three years, the wide receiver produced one of the best seasons in franchise history (2023) and made arguably the greatest catch in franchise history against Green Bay. That is a ton of impact in a short span of time. Sadly, circumstances forced the team into a difficult decision. They needed cap space, and Moore wanted a chance to become a #1 target again after seeing his role reduced last year.

After fielding phone calls in recent weeks, the two sides found the right situation. Bears general manager Ryan Poles sent the receiver to Buffalo, where he could pair with superstar quarterback Josh Allen. Chicago received $16.5 million in cap space and a significant draft pick. People felt the deal was a success for both sides. However, upon closer inspection, you’ll see the Bears pulled off a heist.

DJ Moore netted the Bears way more than he should’ve.

According to the reports, the team will receive the 60th pick in the 2nd round in exchange for Moore and the Bears’ 154th pick in the 5th round. If that sounds like more than expected, it should. Since 2000, there have been nine trades involving a prominent wide receiver who was age 28 or 29 (Moore turns 29 this year). Five of them were coming off a season where they failed to crack 1,000 yards. Three of the five netted no more than 5th and 6th round picks. The only one who didn’t was Randy Moss in 2004.

And now Moore.

Even if you factor the 5th rounder going back in the deal, that is still way more than the other receivers on the list. Put simply, the Bears got away with robbery in this deal. Buffalo was desperate to get Josh Allen some help in the passing game and knew their division rival, the New England Patriots, would be lurking after cutting Stefon Diggs the previous day. Poles played his hand perfectly, taking advantage of Buffalo’s undoubted sense of urgency to pull more from the deal than he probably should’ve.

Chicago now sits beautifully in the draft’s sweet spot.

Anybody who has followed the draft over the years soon learn that certain classes have different strengths and weaknesses. That goes by position groups but also overall quality. Some are top-heavy, with lots of initial star power but limited depth. Others have terrific depth but are light on star power. It sounds like the 2026 draft class falls into the latter category. While there are only around 11 prospects considered blue chip types, this class is rich in players who can at least become quality starters. Draft insider Daniel Jeremiah summed it up perfectly.

Thanks to the DJ Moore trade, the Bears now have two picks squarely in that sweet spot at #57 and #60. That means if they focus on the right positions, there is an excellent chance they can land two starters. Coupled with their 25th overall pick, that is three front-line starters they can snare. It speaks to the excellent work done by Poles and Johnson in finding a way to leverage this class’s strengths.

The Bears’ newest pick has yielded good results over the past several years.

So what of the pick itself? The 60th pick in the draft might be on the tail end of the 2nd round, but that doesn’t mean it holds limited value. Far from it. If you go back just the past 20 years, that spot has yielded some really good football players. Jacksonville star running back Maurice Jones-Drew went there. Eternal Bears nemesis Golden Tate went there. Former Pro Bowl guard and Super Bowl champion Kelechi Osemele also went there. If the Bears do their evaluations right, they could end up with an immediate contributor.

Let’s also not overlook how advantageous that pick is in correlation with their other 2nd rounder, #57. If the Bears wanted to, say, trade down for extra capital, they could do that from #57 with little fear. They know they still have #60, meaning players they may like in that range still have a reasonable chance of being on the board when the Bears go back on the clock. That tactic worked last year when they traded the 41st pick in the 2nd round, which netted the 56th and 62nd picks. One became Ozzy Trapilo.