The Chicago Bears have worked to restock the wide receiver room, and that work includes drafting Burden in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He was taken 39th overall in the second round.
The Missouri alum will be playing alongside veteran DJ Moore, second-year player Rome Odunze, and veterans Miles Boykin and Devin Duvernay. Tyler Scott may be in the mix, too. Burden will be counted on to be the third wide receiver on the depth chart, probably playing in the slot. Burden played the slot 75 percent of the time in college.
So it's good news when ESPN's Bears reporter Courtney Cronin sees that Burden has his first "standout moment" in training camp. Yes, it took seven days, but that's still pretty early in camp.
Bears training camp takeaways: Day 7
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) July 30, 2025
-Luther Burden III has his first stand out moment
-A "completely up for grabs" battle for the No. 2 cornerback spot
-Caleb Williams feeling "pretty solid" in retaining the Bears offense 7 practices inhttps://t.co/wXhFOYf5sf
The big play was in 11-on-11 drills -- Burden got open out of the slot and caught a pass over the middle from quarterback Caleb Williams. The completion was enough of a positive play that it earned an ovation from the sidelines, according to Cronin.
All this following Burden being, according to first-year head coach Ben Johnson, "a little bit behind" earlier in the week because he'd missed two months of time with an injury. Twice, the Bears had to break huddle and re-huddle because Burden was in the wrong spot.
Rookie mistakes are understandable, especially when a player was missing time due to injury, so it's nice to see Burden overcoming that and starting to play well.
Reports indicate that Burden is doing the mental work, at least.
"He's been in the meeting rooms dialed in," Odunze told ESPN. "He's been in the treatment room getting everything he needs. So he's been handling his responsibilities from what he's capable of doing right now.
"You know, as much as you can help with just talking about the offense and him learning and seeing different things, it's going to take getting reps of course to fully grasp it and fully get into it."
The injury Burden suffered, by the way, was a hamstring injury. It happened in May and forced him to miss OTAs and minicamp.
Moore pointed out that Burden, like all rookies, will have to adjust to the speed of the game at the NFL level -- virtually all veterans say the speed at that level is much, much faster than college.
Speaking of speed, with just two practices in for Burden, Johnson said this about his rookie: "The play speed jumped off the tape."
High praise from a new coach, one who is known for being offensive-minded, for a rookie. One that the coach had a hand in drafting, to be sure, but high praise nonetheless.
If Burden can continue to grow, the Bears' passing game could be a strength for the first time in a long time. Williams has to develop, and the offensive line has to give him time to throw, but with talented veteran Moore, developing second-year talent Odunze, and a potential rookie star in Burden, fans might finally get to see the ball moved through the air as much as on the ground.