The Chicago Bears trading D.J. Moore was unfortunate. Fans still had fresh memories of his incredible catches over the past season, particularly the ones that put away the Green Bay Packers in December and January. Trading one of the season’s biggest heroes just felt wrong. At the same time, everybody knew it was a possibility. Chicago had serious salary-cap concerns heading into the offseason. Moore’s contract was one of the biggest on the payroll. Moving him would get them back under the cap. So when the deal with Buffalo went public, not many were surprised. However, money wasn’t the only motivation for the move. Head coach Ben Johnson also played a part.
It’s an open secret that Johnson now controls the Bears’ roster, a fact that was likely negotiated as part of his contract when he came over from Detroit. He wanted to have a say over personnel decisions. Every major move since then has come with his signature. That includes trading Moore. According to Sports Mockery insider Jeff Hughes, that decision wasn’t solely motivated by financial reasons. Johnson also had doubts about the wide receiver’s commitment to working hard enough.
“But he also needs guys who will buy into his style because he works these guys really f**king hard. And Ben’s not going to have somebody here who’s going to lazily go through the program. A George Pickens would be out of here in a week. He would never do any of the things Ben needs him to do. And I don’t think DJ Moore loved doing a lot of those things.
I think that’s why they were willing to get rid of DJ Moore. And DJ was productive and a good Bear. But Ben now wants the guys that are going to be his definition of what a Bear is.”
Ben Johnson is a grinder. Clearly, he thinks Moore is not.
That doesn’t mean the wide receiver has a poor work ethic. One can’t be as productive as he is every year without working hard. However, it appears Johnson sensed that Moore was always holding back a little every day, never going the full 100%. This is why you often saw fans accusing him of lagging on routes. He wasn’t running them at full speed, leading to misfires between him and Caleb Williams. Johnson saw those plays, too. In fact, he probably watched them multiple times when reviewing game film every week.
At some point, it is likely he got tired of the inconsistency and so throttled back on Moore’s usual number of targets. The 85 he had last season was the second-lowest of his career. Between the start of the 2023 season and the win over Cincinnati last year, Moore was targeted four times or less in just two games. After that game, it happened five times. Johnson shifted those targets to Colston Loveland, Luther Burden and Rome Odunze. In retrospect, that was a clear signal that Moore’s time in Chicago was winding down.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
Johnson could’ve easily caved to outside pressure.
After all, Moore had delivered him two gigantic victories last season. Fans wouldn’t have blinked twice if the Bears chose to keep the receiver. Ben Johnson showed that he won’t let outside noise dictate his decisions. As helpful as the receiver was to a successful first season, the head coach is looking for players he feels can help him win a championship. Those types of players eat, sleep, live, and breathe the game of football. While Moore may love the game, it wasn’t enough to convince Johnson he’d all in.
Is that being unfair? It depends on who you ask. The fact remains that it was the head coach’s call. He wanted the change and he got it. Moore had a memorable three-year run with the organization. His two catches against Green Bay will live in franchise lore forever. Sadly, it takes more than that to win over this coach. It can’t just be about a small handful of big moments. Johnson wants guys who step up every single week.
