The Chicago Bears made a folk hero out of DJ Moore last season. Granted, the wide receiver did most of the worst with two of the most meaningful catches in franchise history, but their media machine took care of the rest. Despite playing only three seasons with the team, he will be remembered more fondly than names like Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall, even though the latter two were more productive. That is what happens when you slay the Green Bay Packers demon with two mighty killing blows.

Sadly, the story doesn’t have a happy ending. The tax man came calling. Chicago had serious salary cap problems and had to find ways to address them. One of the few they had that didn’t involve restructuring contracts was unloading Moore, who counted $28.5 million against the books. With Luther Burden and Rome Odunze in place, it was a tough sacrifice the Bears were willing to make, trading Moore to the Buffalo Bills for a 2nd round pick. While the deal made sense on paper, some NFL executives told Mike Sando of The Athletic that Buffalo got fleeced.

“D.J. Moore was gonna get cut, and they gave up a second-round pick to get him,” one exec said. “They gave up a second-round pick and $40 million (in guarantees). What is going on?”

As one agent noted, getting free agents to choose Buffalo over other NFL cities can be tricky. Recent history could be another factor, as former coach Sean McDermott complained about personnel, especially at wide receiver. Moore played under new coach Joe Brady in Carolina. No one can say the Bills did not get the receiver Brady sought.

“D.J. Moore has two years of regression now,” another exec said. “He is a non-traditional receiver that wins with size and yards after the catch. I still feel they needed someone that could win down the field. Moore can do that — he did it to beat Green Bay. But I feel like his strength is on the underneath catch-and-run stuff, which they already have with (Khalil) Shakir.”

The Bills badly need DJ Moore to excel.

In most cases, that sort of trade should’ve probably gone for a 4th round pick. Moore’s sagging production and hefty contract made it so. However, Buffalo needed a playmaker more than ever. Somebody who could make things happen in big games. They saw what Moore did in crucial moments all season for the Bears. They were willing to overpay somewhat to get that guy on their roster. Now, Josh Allen may finally have someone who can step up in the playoffs, which has been a constant issue for years.

One also must not discount head coach Joe Brady. He worked with Moore in Carolina for two seasons. They know each other well. If anybody understands how to get the most from the veteran receiver, it would be him. As in most cases like this, nobody will mention the price tag if the player delivers. Moore cracking 1,000 yards and making some big catches in the playoffs will make that 2nd round pick look like a bargain. It is up to Chicago to make full use of it as they continue retooling their roster.

Moore deserves the benefit of the doubt.

What happened in Chicago wasn’t entirely his fault. After an outstanding 2023 season, the team switched quarterbacks in 2024 to a rookie, Caleb Williams. That goes without mentioning the disastrous Shane Waldron situation at offensive coordinator. Then last year, Ben Johnson arrived with a new offense that was predicated on featuring the tight end position a lot more. DJ Moore did the best he could with the targets he got. It is worth mentioning that if he had gotten his usual 130 targets, he would’ve cracked 1,000 yards.

Maybe Buffalo overpaid, but that doesn’t mean their offense isn’t better with Moore involved. He gives them options they didn’t really have last year. The idea that the Bears would’ve cut him if they hadn’t found a trade partner is untrue. Team brass insisted they didn’t really want to move on from Moore. Business issues merely made it necessary. Don’t be surprised if in a few years this trade will be looked at as a win-win for both teams.

The Chicago Bears didn’t spend heavily in free agency this year, but they were active across multiple areas. That was particularly true on the offensive line. It started with trading for veteran center Garrett Bradbury from New England. Drew Dalman had just retired, and the team needed a reliable option in the middle. Next came some decisions at left tackle. Unsurprisingly, the Bears opted to bring back Braxton Jones. He knows the system, has starting experience, and can be a solid hand when healthy. The much bigger surprise was the arrival of Jedrick Wills, the former 10th overall pick in 2020. It was a move met with a shrug of the shoulders at first. Tom Thayer liked the move only because it improved team depth.

However, it sounds like the former Bears guard has changed his stance in the past three weeks. He appeared on Kap & J. Hood for ESPN 1000 to discuss the team’s new-look line. Thayer openly stated that Wills could be the steal of the offseason, provided he is healthy after missing most of the past two seasons due to a unique knee injury. It is such that the longtime analyst even believes it isn’t necessary for the Bears to draft an offensive tackle early.

Tom Thayer usually can be trusted with his takes.

After all, he was one of the first to praise the Bears when they drafted Jones in 2022. He stated early on that the rookie tackle should be considered a real threat to start. He loved the Darnell Wright pick a year later and knew immediately what sort of impact Joe Thuney would have when the Bears traded for him. The point is, Thayer knows capable offensive linemen when he sees them. It appears he went back and reviewed the tape of Wills since the signing first happened. Apparently, he came away more encouraged than he thought.

Talent was never the issue with Wills. He was the 10th overall pick for a reason. Draft experts loved his mix of size and athleticism, believing he had all the tools of a future Pro Bowler. Things started pretty well in Cleveland, helping the Browns make the playoffs as a rookie. His second year was solid as well. Then things took a turn in 2022. The team had shifted from Baker Mayfield to Deshaun Watson following the blockbuster trade, resulting in a significant scheme shift. Wills didn’t take to it well, and then injuries struck a year later.

What matters is what the Bears think.

They signed him for a reason. They must think Wills has the capacity to play. Head coach Ben Johnson has always had a sharp eye for talent. The medicals must’ve checked out as well, or the Bears wouldn’t have finalized the deal. That leaves questions about Wills’ motivation. Analysts in Cleveland expressed concerns about the young tackle’s passion for the game, which began to show after his first couple of years. Is Johnson confident he can fix that, or does he believe Wills was unfairly criticized for what was a tough situation?

It’s one of those possibilities, or the Bears merely see him as a cheap flier for training camp. We’ll get a clearer picture on that during the draft. If the team doesn’t select an offensive tackle in the first two rounds, that will be a signal they’re willing to give Wills an honest shot. He’s always had the ability. Maybe this offense is a better fit for him than what he had to play with the Browns. Dan Roushar is one of the best in the business. If the Bears’ offensive line coach can reignite Wills, nobody can. Tom Thayer has that level of trust.

The Chicago Bears remain deadlocked on their new stadium situation. Illinois government officials have hemmed and hawed on the issue for months despite insisting there’s been real progress. The first attempt to get a vote passed on the PILOT megaprojects bill didn’t even reach the starting line in March. Now, team president Kevin Warren has set a hard deadline of May 31st (when the legislature adjourns) for when the Bears will decide whether to stay in Arlington Heights or shift to Indiana. If you ask Thomas McDermott, though, that decision was made a long time ago.

He is the mayor of Hammond, Indiana. Most believe that is the preferred building site if the Bears were to cross state lines. Warren basically confirmed as much when he stated the township offers 340 acres of land, which is larger than the 326 acres they purchased in Arlington Heights. McDermott has already been preparing as if the Bears’ coming over is a forgone conclusion. He even told Doug Ross of the Chicago Tribune that he believes it is exactly that. The franchise merely hasn’t come out and said it yet.

McDermott is convinced the Bears are choosing Hammond over Arlington Heights.

“The Bears had already made their mind up before most of the public found out about it,” he said.

Thomas McDermott isn’t crazy for saying that.

Let’s just look at the situation from a business perspective. Illinois has been resisting this endeavor from the beginning. Getting help with infrastructure was like pulling teeth, and the state remains like the Spartans at Thermopylae when it comes to property tax assistance. This doesn’t even account for many in the government who are trying to get the Bears to pay off the remainder of the Soldier Field debt ($400 million), even though they paid their share long ago. It is not negotiable.

You’re already seeing top brass prepare fans for the possibility. Just look at George McCaskey’s comments about it during his meeting with the media in Arizona on Wednesday.

“I don’t think, in the end, it’s going to matter to people. Back in 1976, the New York Football Giants went across state lines to New Jersey. They have been there ever since. The Jets joined them shortly thereafter. And then 35 years later, both teams had an opportunity to reevaluate their situations and recommitted to New Jersey.

“And somehow, the Republic has survived.”

That is the equivalent of a parent telling a complaining child during a move to a new town that they’ll get over it. Harsh? Sure. It’s also kind of true. Giants fans weren’t happy about leaving New York. They got past it. Hammond is less than 30 minutes from downtown Chicago, just like the Meadowlands is from downtown New York. It will be an adjustment period, but not a huge one in the grand scheme of things. That is before you bring up all the financial assistance Indiana is ready and waiting to throw into the project.

It feels like the Bears are trying to avoid public blowback.

The strategy here is straightforward. If they’d just up and left for Indiana months ago, the public outcry would’ve been intense. By holding off on the decision and continuing to negotiate with Illinois, they’re making it look like they are giving their longtime home a real chance to make a deal. However, they knew how much resistance there would be in Springfield and the limited odds of the bill getting passed. By waiting until the end of the legislature session in May, they can state they gave Illinois every possible opportunity. They just didn’t think the Bears were worth keeping. You can’t blame the organization for not staying where they’re not wanted.

Maybe a little underhanded, but also carrying grains of truth. Illinois has treated the Bears like an inconvenience for a long time, though never too shy to use their immense popularity to further political agendas. Now, when the team pushes to build a new, modern stadium that isn’t a relic decades past, they’re stonewalled. This comes despite a more than fair offer of the Bears paying for the entire stadium construction themselves. Nope, not enough.

It becomes easy to see why Thomas McDermott sounds so confident.

The Chicago Bears won’t tell anybody who they plan to pick with the 25th selection this month. Part of that is because they don’t want people to know who they like. Another part is that they have no idea who will be available. Draft insiders haven’t gotten much information on who they’re even meeting with, let alone who they’re interested in. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson deserve credit for keeping their intentions locked down from the public eye. So how do we know what they’ll do?

In these situations, math could be of help. The ESPN analytics team released its annual Draft Day Predictor ahead of April 23rd. It is meant to offer the mathematical odds for each prospect in the class and where they are most likely to be selected.

“The underlying model is based on prospect grades from Scouts Inc, expert mock drafts, and team needs along with a few other factors. The Predictor considers these factors in proportion to how accurate they have been in the past.”

This created an interesting question. Which players, if any, are favored to go 25th overall to Chicago? The data charts popped out two names who weren’t just favorites, but heavy favorites to go at that spot: Clemson defensive tackle Peter Woods and Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren.

Both players make sense for the Chicago Bears.

One of the big issues for them last season was interior pass rush. It was too inconsistent and lacked explosiveness. That is something Woods might bring to the table. He has a great athletic profile and the ideal mix of upper-body strength and lower-body burst. The big concern with him is his sparse production. He never had a true standout season at Clemson, leading many to wonder why. This uncertainty is why there is significant hesitation about taking him early in the draft. Maybe the Bears, with their strong coaching staff, might be willing to take the risk.

McNeil-Warren, on the other hand, is a classic throwback. He’s a big, strong safety with significant hitting power, leaving offensive players wary of crossing the middle. He is athletic enough to make plays in coverage and might be the most gifted forced fumble merchant since Charles Tillman. A creative defensive coordinator can make great use of his versatility. The Chicago Bears do have a starting spot open alongside Coby Bryant. He might be an ideal fit for the new vision for this team.

The Bears won’t reach at positions of need.

They’ve made this clear in the draft last year. Tight end and wide receiver were not at the top of their needs list in 2025, but they took them anyway. It worked out pretty well. There is another layer to this projection. Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com recently released his updated big board for this 2026 class. Keep in mind, it’s fed by both his tape evaluation and what he’s hearing around the NFL. McNeil-Warren is ranked 16th. Woods is ranked 37th. So if both are on the board, the decision seems pretty obvious.

Then again, there is always the chance that neither player is available. Then you’re looking at guys like Caleb Lomu, Blaker Miller, and Keldric Faulk. The truth is, most of the options when the Chicago Bears go on the clock will have questions about them. They’d go higher if they didn’t. The trick Poles and Johnson will be pinpointing the one guy whose flaws they can live with, or they think are incorrect or overblown.

The Chicago Bears are in a rare position: they are the last team in the NFC North to pick in the 1st round this year. It will start with the Minnesota Vikings, then the Detroit Lions, and finally the Green Bay. It’s been a long time since that happened. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson must hope that their rivals don’t hit any home runs with those picks and make life harder moving forward. However, it won’t be just about that. Whichever players those other teams pick will have a significant impact on who falls to the Bears at #25.

That is where the latest update regarding the Lions is so interesting. Tony Pauline is one of the best draft insiders on the circuit these days. He had some new information that feels pertinent to the 1st round for Chicago. From what he’s hearing, Detroit is zeroed in on Alabama tackle Kadyn Proctor. They don’t feel good before their left tackle options after releasing Taylor Decker. Proctor is the kind of bruising blocker they feel is perfect for their run-heavy attack as they try to regain an identity they lost last season.

“The Detroit Lions have a hole at left tackle, and sources believe they’ve zeroed in on Alabama’s Kadyn Proctor…

…Those I’ve spoken with believe the latest Proctor ends up in the draft is the 17th pick, presently owned by the Detroit Lions. They need a left tackle after releasing Taylor Decker, and Proctor gives them an option, along with Penei Sewell, the 2021 first-round pick who was a star at Oregon on the blind side before moving to right tackle after the Lions drafted him in 2021. More than anything, the Lions want to run the ball and hope to extend Jahmyr Gibbs before the season starts. They believe the combo of Sewell and Proctor would be a dominant run-blocking duo.”

The Detroit Lions going that route is good for the Bears.

There are two reasons for this. We’ll start with the practical. For months, almost every draft expert believed the Lions would target an edge rusher. They lost Al-Quadin Muhammad to free agency and replaced him with D.J. Wonnum and Payton Turner. Not exactly an upgrade. They need somebody who can rush across from Aidan Hutchinson. Taking a top rusher at the 17th pick would make sense. However, if they’re focused on a left tackle, that significantly improves the odds of one of the better edge rushers falling to the Bears at #25.

As of now, projections have around five edge rushers going in the top 24 picks. However, removing the Lions from that equation would improve the odds of that number dropping to four or even three. Right now, most would agree the New York Jets (#2, #16), Tennessee Titans (#4), Kansas City Chiefs (#9), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (#15), Detroit Lions (#17), and Philadelphia Eagles (#23) are believed to view edge rusher as a need in some capacity.

Tampa signed Muhammad as a free agent. Philadelphia signed Arnold Ebiketie. New York signed Joseph Ossai and Kingsley Enigbare. That could dissuade them from attacking the position early, leaving Tennessee and Kansas City as the bigger threats to watch. Obviously, someone unexpected could still draft one, but Detroit leaning away from it is still a break.

Targeting Proctor is a risk in itself.

Talent-wise, the Alabama standout has a rare mix of size, power, and mobility. He has flashes of dominance on his tape. It is easy to fall in love with what he can be. The problem is he never did it consistently. Not only are there concerns about his weight (350+ lbs), but league scouts also have serious misgivings about his passion for the game. Bob McGinn of Go Long found this out recently. They see the talent, as well as somebody not interested in doing the extra work.

“I didn’t like Evan Neal and this guy is exactly the same,” a second scout said. “I wanted to like him, too. He has a little bit of movement for being so big. But the game against Auburn, he’s just standing around watching. He just teases you and, ultimately, disappoints. Big, good-looking dude but not physical, not a lot of grit. Stands around and watches.”

This would be doubly beneficial to the Bears. Not only would the Lions add a player who may ultimately prove to be a disappointment, but it’ll also ensure Chicago, which does need a left tackle, won’t have to wrestle with the decision to draft him were he to fall to the 25th pick. Sure, there is always a chance Proctor overcomes those questions to achieve his full potential. Based on what most around the league believe, they wouldn’t put money on it.

The Chicago Bears have been slogging their way toward a new stadium, like the Allies during the Battle of the Somme. For every step they take, it feels like they suffer multiple setbacks. Remember, this saga began in 2021 when they placed a bid on the Arlington Park property. In the five years since then, the only thing they’ve managed to accomplish is securing ownership of it and working out property tax issues with Arlington Heights. Everything else has been one ongoing headache. All the while, team president Kevin Warren, the man running this show, has been hesitant to provide anything close to a hard deadline on when a decision will be made.

That finally changed on Wednesday at the NFL owners meetings in Arizona. The Bears have finally reached a point where they seem to have options. Illinois’ state legislature is willing to put the PILOT bill, which would provide the property tax clarity the team needs to start building, on the floor for a vote. On the flip side, the state of Indiana has prepared all the necessary legislation and a prime construction site in Hammond. All the Bears need to do is make a decision. Warren believes the date is almost at hand. Courtney Cronin of ESPN pinpointed it.

“We’re in an excellent position,” Warren said Wednesday at the NFL’s league meetings. “I recently said that the target is to make sure that we have a decision made by springtime here soon. Late spring, early summer would be that from a target.”

The Bears are waiting to see if the PILOT bill passes during the Illinois general assembly’s spring session, which ends on May 31. State lawmakers introduced the proposed legislation, which would freeze property tax assessments on the sites of “megaprojects” and allow developers to negotiate a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) with local governments.

Kevin Warren likely always knew it’d come to this.

Once it became clear that the government wouldn’t reach a decision last October during its fall session, the Bears had a decision to make. Do they go to Indiana immediately, or wait for the spring session, which runs from March through the end of May? After discussions with Governor J.B. Pritzker, it was felt that waiting could produce the results Warren and the McCaskeys hoped for. The family has never wanted to leave Illinois. They merely sought reasonable options on infrastructure and property taxes.

However, there has been persistent resistance in Springfield on this issue. Some of it is people not wanting the Bears to leave Chicago, preferring they stay in the city. Others aren’t eager to give a billion-dollar corporation tax breaks when they should be focused on helping people who actually need it. That has made getting the necessary votes difficult. Two months remain until the legislature adjourns for the summer. If they can’t reach a decision by then, the Bears sound more than comfortable with starting the move to Hammond.

Patience is wearing thin at Halas Hall.

Kevin Warren has been in charge since 2022 and hasn’t had much to show for it in Chicago. He was hired primarily to close the stadium deal, having earned experience in a similar venture with Minnesota. Yet for four years, he hasn’t gained much ground. It wasn’t until he brought Indiana into the situation that Illinois finally started having serious discussions. Even now, though, they are dragging their feet, unable to get over the last hurdle despite what many experts agree is a pretty solid deal for the state.

They’ve been testing the limits of the Bears’ patience for the past several months. If they decide to push their luck by not holding a vote in May, that will be the breaking point. The McCaskeys don’t sound hesitant about going to Indiana. They cited the Giants’ move to New Jersey in 1976. There was an adjustment period, but fans eventually grew to accept it. They believe it will be the same for Bears fans, and they’re probably right.

The NFL made its ruling at the start of the new league year. Despite significant evidence showing Ian Cunningham was the primary football decision-maker for the Atlanta Falcons, the Chicago Bears would not receive two compensatory draft picks per the Rooney Rule. It was a baffling decision. Everybody involved in the situation believes the Bears were entitled to compensation. Even the national media couldn’t understand the NFL’s stubbornness regarding such a technicality. It felt like they were trying to avoid admitting they were wrong and didn’t mind screwing the Bears in the process. One would think that would be the end of it, right? Not if George McCaskey has anything to say about it.

The team chairman and owner has never been known for being overly meddlesome in league affairs. That said, he can be pretty active when he feels the cause is worthy. This is one of those cases. McCaskey, along with team president Kevin Warre and general manager Ryan Poles, flew to New York for a meeting with commissioner Roger Goodell to reinforce their appeal over the comp picks. It is hoped that this added pressure from an actual owner might sway the decision.

George McCaskey is in uncharted territory.

The NFL has made adjustments to compensatory picks before, but never this close to the draft. As of now, the closest it has happened is 44 days before opening night. There are only 23 days now until the 2026 draft begins. Chicago would shatter that record if they somehow convinced the NFL to reverse its decision. Knowing how the league has operated for years, it is hard to imagine it will be willing to rock the boat that much. Then again, they are the ones who created this mess with the funky language in the Rooney Rule. They are duty-bound to clean it up.

Making this matter even messier is an ongoing dispute with Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who is attacking the Rooney Rule. He states it constitutes blatant race and sex discrimination and not hiring based on merit. Most see it as the highly conservative state’s way of further curbing diversity hiring policies in the state. If Goodell were to admit the NFL made a mistake with the Bears’ decision, it wouldn’t be a great look. That makes it more difficult to get it overturned.

McCaskey is doing the right thing.

What has happened to his franchise is an injustice. They followed the spirit of the Rooney Rule, helping Cunningham elevate his profile to a point where he was hired to run his own NFL franchise. According to the rule, any minority hire in that situation earns his former team two 3rd round compensatory picks. Yet the NFL is holding out because the Falcons chose to give Matt Ryan the title of director of football operations, even though he was never going to actually run the scouting operation and pick players.

The league basically looked at his title and didn’t bother gathering any further information. He’s the primary football guy, so no picks for you. George McCaskey may not be the sharpest owner around, but he knows an injustice when he sees one. His presence in the appeal process might give Goodell pause on the matter since this isn’t something McCaskey does often. Maybe it’s a losing effort, but it wasn’t a fight the Bears were ready to abandon. They were cheated and intend to make their displeasure known.