The Chicago Bears aren’t surrounded by the same flurry of rumors they’ve been in the past few years, but that doesn’t mean they are completely invisible. Salary cap issues mean they have to make some difficult decisions on what to do next. Among the hottest debates among fans and media is what to do with DJ Moore. There is no doubt that the wide receiver played a pivotal role in the team’s playoff push last season. His catches against Green Bay were iconic. However, he counts $28.5 million against the cap next season, and his production took another dip.
Moore had over 1300 yards in 2023, dropped down to over 900 in 2024, and failed to crack 700 last season. Other offensive players began asserting themselves in the passing game, including rookies Colston Loveland and Luther Burden. The Bears are paying him to play like a star, but the reality is Moore hasn’t been doing that. General manager Ryan Poles was asked about the situation during his opening presser at the scouting combine. He kept his words carefully neutral, insisting the team loves Moore, but left the door open for all possibilities.
“Yeah. I have to have conversations to see what, like I said, the best combination of players we can bring in. We want him here. We think highly of him. He’s a great teammate. He has been productive pretty consistently over the last however many years he’s been here. So I have nothing but great things to say about him. But this is the time now where we have to look at all the different scenarios to see what can allow us to put the best team out there. And I’ve talked about this before. There are relationships there. There’s a lot there that make it really, really difficult. He’s a guy we want here. But we have to look at all the different scenarios.”
DJ Moore is in a complicated spot.
He came up big for the team several times last season. Caleb Williams seems to trust him. Yet his ability to impact games has steadily gone down. Maybe some of it is the new offense under Ben Johnson. Maybe some of it was injuries. Whatever the case, the Bears are left with one reality. They’re paying him more money than Jameson Williams, who had 1,117 yards last season. Smart teams don’t sit around hoping things will improve. More often than not, they make the tough decision to move on.
The Bears aren’t in a bad place. They have plenty of young offensive talent. Loveland, Burden, and Rome Odunze can handle the load in the passing game. DJ Moore is still 29 years old. He can be a playmaker for somebody in need of wide receiver help. It’s merely a question of finding a team that needs one and has the money to handle his contract. Tennessee, Las Vegas, and New England come to mind. Each has or will have young quarterbacks in need of weapons. Moore has experience with that already.
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| Player | Team | Average Annual Value (AAV) | Total Contract Value | Total Guarantees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amon-Ra St. Brown | Lions | $30.00 million | $120.0 million | $77.0 million |
| Brandon Aiyuk | 49ers | $30.00 million | $120.0 million | $76.0 million |
| Tyreek Hill | Dolphins | $30.00 million | $90.0 million | $59.0 million |
| Tee Higgins | Bengals | $28.75 million | $115.0 million | $40.9 million |
| Jaylen Waddle | Dolphins | $28.25 million | $84.75 million | $76.0 million |
| Davante Adams | Rams | $28.00 million | $140.0 million | $26.0 million |
| DJ Moore | Bears | $27.50 million | $110.0 million | $81.5 million |
| Jameson Williams | Lions | $26.67 million | $80.0 million | $66.6 million |
| Cooper Kupp | Rams | $26.70 million | $80.1 million | $35.0 million |
| DeVonta Smith | Eagles | $25.00 million | $75.0 million | $51.0 million |
Sometimes tough decisions like this happen.
It is the nature of living in the salary cap era. Sooner or later, you’ll have to unload a player you really like because there is no other option. That is what the Kansas City Chiefs did with Joe Thuney last year. The Bears benefited from that in a huge way. Now they’re on the other side of that coin. Trading DJ Moore isn’t a foregone conclusion, but it sounds like it’s squarely on the table. Poles hasn’t been afraid of the tough decisions in the past. He should be able to find a taker if it comes to that.
As for Moore himself, it seems cruel for him to be in this position. The guy waited his entire career to play meaningful football and finally got the chance last season. Now here the Bears are, knocking on the door of a possible Super Bowl run, and he might be shipped out before getting a chance to experience it. The NFL is a nasty business sometimes.
