(Photo: Chicago Sun-Times)
D.J. Moore played his college football for the Maryland Terrapins. In his first two years, he recorded 357 yards receiving in 2015 and 637 in 2016. The 2017 season was his breakout year. D.J. eclipsed 1,033 yards receiving and eight touchdowns on the year which were both career highs. Following his junior year, D.J. decided to enter his name in the NFL Draft. The Carolina Panthers drafted him in 2018 with the 24th overall pick in the first round hoping to give Cam Newton a go-to receiver. D.J. did put together three consecutive seasons of 1,000 yards receiving, but the Panthers were still struggling to win football games. Last year in a shakeup, the Panthers decided to trade the Wide Receiver to the Chicago Bears and in return, the Bears also got the number one draft pick in this past draft which of course turned into Caleb Williams. The franchise has decided to reward the veteran Wide Receiver with a new contract. A four-year deal worth $110 million and $82.6 million guaranteed.
When the Bears had Justin Fields, I was excited after the acquisition of Moore because it provided the Quarterback with a true number-one receiving option. The first thing I notice is the toughness he displays. D.J. has no issues with going over the middle to make the catch in traffic, even if that means taking a hit. I like how shifty he is with his route running and he’s able to adjust on the fly rather quickly which is essential for a receiver today. D.J. can be difficult to bring down with him being a smaller receiver and forcing people to miss in open space. He knows how to start, stop, come back to the ball, then he’s looking up the field for more yards after the catch. Even with coverage all over him, he’ll leap up and make that grab in the air. D.J. is what I refer to as “slippery in space” meaning he can catch the ball, then move his way up the field. He’s able to play outside and in the slot. I’ve even seen him take some pitches out of the backfield as a Running Back and D.J. can also be used on jet sweeps. Anyway, the ball can get into his hands, he will do something with it. He fights and makes it challenging for a defense to take him down. He plays as if he’s a Running Back after the catch because of the way he makes would-be tacklers bounce off of him.
Even in a down year in Chicago, D.J. still produced and recorded 1,000 receiving yards for the fourth time in his career. This is the largest contract ever in the history of the Chicago Bears. This offense could be special in Chicago. There’s Caleb Williams, D’Andre Swift, Keenan Allen, Rome Odunze and D.J. Moore. This has a chance to be the Bears’ best passing attack ever. He is the best receiver the Bears have had since Brandon Marshall.
