The Chicago Bears are starting to see Luther Burden take steps in his second NFL season now that star quarterback Caleb Williams is healthy. After Burden produced 95 yards in Williams return and then 130 yards in his second game back, head coach Ben Johnson acknowledged his progress while also admitting there is another level to his game that has not been unlocked.
Chicago Bears could get more from Luther Burden
Johnson praised Burden’s ability to get open in the intermediate part of the field in the past few weeks. However, he also noted that the team can do a better job dialing up deep ball attempts for him.
“I think what's always stood out about him is he's elite with the ball in his hands, and it's just a matter of how can we get it to him,” said Johnson on the skill set Burden possesses. “Certainly not at a level where we're predictable either. We don't want it to just be screens or underneath routes. He's got more to his game than that. He's got more speed than that too.”
Last year, Burden had 18 catches for 100 yards on screens. This year he has eight receptions for 69 yards. Johnson noted that last year the Bears were able to build on that by getting him deep down the field on a few passes. He added that while the team has not dialed up the deep ball for Burden yet, it is coming.
So, last year, we were able to get him over the top a couple of times, which was great to see,” added Johnson. “He's got that ability. I don't think that we've done that quite yet this year, and yet that'd be a great thing to tap into. But I'm encouraged by what I see with his intermediate routes and the detail with which he's playing in that regard”
Last year, Burden had 20.8% of his routes come in the intermediate portion of the field, which is 10 to 19 yards. He caught 10 passes for 204 yards. He also had 15% of his targets in the deep area of the field. He caught six passes for 218 yards.
This year, he is up to 35% of his targets in the intermediate. He is also already at 259 yards in that area, more than last year. However, only 6% of his targets are deep balls.
Burden has shown improvement in the intermediate; now they need to see more in the deep part of the field.
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