We all know how the DJ Moore trade happened. The Chicago Bears flipped him to the Buffalo Bills along with a 5th round pick in exchange for a 2nd round pick. It wasn’t an easy decision. The team wanted to keep him. Unfortunately, the business of football catches up to you eventually. The Bears were caught in a salary cap crunch. They needed a way to create space. Trading Moore secured $16 million. It was basic economics, even if the personal emotions involved made it incredibly difficult.
What we don’t know is the deeper details of how it came about. Usually, situations like this develop quickly once phone calls are placed. However, that isn’t the case here. The story goes much further back than anybody could’ve imagined. Bills general manager Brandon Beane appeared on The Pat McAfee Show to discuss the current state of his team. The Moore trade soon came up, and it was here he dropped a bombshell.
Buffalo had actually called the Bears back at the trade deadline in November, hoping to make a deal then. The Bears declined, unwilling to part with one of their offensive weapons. However, after the season, as the cap issue came to the forefront, Bears GM Ryan Poles called them back to ask whether they were still interested. The rest is history.
The Bears’ decision to turn down the DJ Moore trade isn’t surprising.
Timing is everything. One must remember that the team had won five of their last six games after starting 0-2 before the deadline arrived. They had serious momentum building, and Caleb Williams was a huge reason for that. The last thing the team wanted to do was mess with the formula when they finally had something cooking. Their decision proved 100% correct. Moore became one of their most critical playmakers down the stretch. His overtime touchdown to beat Green Bay and go-ahead score in the playoffs to cap the Bears’ epic comeback would never have happened if they had decided to trade him.
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It won’t be remembered in the history books compared to other prominent moments, but the decision to keep DJ Moore a little longer led to one of the best stretches of Bears football fans got to witness. Besides, there is no reason to feel bad about how things worked out. Moore goes to a team where he gets to play with a top-three quarterback under a head coach who knows him. The Bears gained financial flexibility and an extra high draft pick while still retaining a lot of young talent at wide receiver.
Moore’s time in Chicago wasn’t long.
Yet nobody can say it meant nothing. He started by delivering one of the best seasons a Bears wide receiver has ever had in 2023, going for over 1300 yards. Then last year, he had what will arguably go down as the greatest catch in franchise history. Not many people are able to squeeze that much into just three seasons. It’s unlikely he feels bitter about the outcome. He lands in a place that will feature him a lot more than the Bears would’ve under Ben Johnson, who, in turn, gets to continue remaking the offense in his own vision.
This will be one of those win-win trades when it’s all said and done. Here is hoping Moore gets a chance to help Buffalo finally get over the hump to a Super Bowl. He is certainly the best weapon they’ve had in some time. The interesting part is what the Bears will do at wide receiver with him gone. Signing Kalif Raymond was a start, but it wouldn’t be shocking if they look for more help in the draft.
