The Chicago Bears never announced a changing of the guard at wide receiver, and they didn't ever have to. With DJ Moore gone to Buffalo, the top job in the receiver room was supposed to belong to Rome Odunze this season. Halfway through the year, the numbers say the job belongs to Luther Burden III.
The numbers aren't close
Burden leads the Bears in targets (56), receptions (42), receiving yards (547), and receiving touchdowns (3). Odunze, the former top ten pick the offseason was supposed to run through has 28 catches for 468 yards, and has still not produced a touchdown this season.
Tight end Colston Loveland is a step closer to Burden than Odunze is, collecting 33 receptions on 50 targets. Burden has turned 75 percent of his targets into catches, doing it in his second season, making his 47-catch, 652-yard rookie season look like a warm-up.
The surge has a clear starting point. Since quarterback Caleb Williams returned from his hamstring injury, Burden has caught 19 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns across three games. He caught all 12 passes thrown his way during the wins over the Falcons and the Patriots, respectively. The designed touches, the screens, and quick throws that once belonged to Moore now run through Burden.
None of this makes Odunze unimportant, nor does it try to downplay his contributions to the winning atmosphere currently in Chicago. But WR1 is not a title a team hands out in August. It's where the ball goes when the quarterback needs a play, and right now that's Burden, week after week, drive after drive.
Tampa Bay gets the next look at Burden on Sunday night, and the Buccaneers will be game planning for the receiver Chicago actually features. That should tell you everything you need to know.
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