The Chicago Bears went through Tuesday’s practice with one running back, sixth-year veteran and 2023 Pro Bowler D’Andre Swift, available to them, meaning they had to get creative.
Naturally, the Bears turned to … wide receiver DJ Moore.
That shines light on several items. Not the least of which is the Bears’ dearth of healthy running backs. The room was already rife with question marks. But also, just how much is too much to put on Moore’s plate, and will it take away from his production outside?
DJ Moore’s Backfield Workload Ticks Up With RB Injuries
Bears Must Practice Caution With DJ Moore
Rome Odunze joked after practice that he might need to take some handoffs after seeing Moore take some in practice. The Bears have had the eight-year wideout in the backfield quite often this summer.
That is not new.
Moore has 57 carries for 431 yards and 1 touchdown in his career. He toted the ball 14 times for 75 yards with the Bears in 2024.
It is also unlikely that Moore will see a significant uptick in carries. Yet and still, the Bears had better take heed of the example the San Francisco 49ers set with Deebo Samuel, whose usage as a runner took a toll on him physically, which hindered his receiving production as much as his durability.
Samuel carried the ball more than Moore has or will.
That does not mean the Bears have to avoid using Moore that way completely. Moore will not always get the ball on a handoff (or pitch, toss, etc.) or at all every snap.
But he is an integral part of their passing game, and the last thing the Bears should want is to have something happen to him because they were leaning on him more than they should have as a runner. What that line is, only Moore and the Bears know what that is.
Fortunately, Bears general manager Ryan Poles is optimistic about the RB room’s health.
Ryan Poles’ Draft Record Under Microscope After Roster Cutdown Deadline
Coming off his fourth draft, Poles has faced scrutiny for his decisions since his first year at the helm, but that hot-button issue picked back up as the Bears announced their final cuts and 53-man roster for the 2025 season.
Undrafted free agents like linebacker Carl Jones Jr. and wide receiver Jahdae Walker show well on the Bears exec.
Cuts like 2023 draftees wide receiver Tyler Scott and defensive tackle Zacch Pickens do not.
The Bears selected Pickens No. 64 overall and circled back for Scott with pick No. 133. Their exits (at least for now) leave the Bears with six players from that draft class still on the 2025 Week 1 roster.
Four of them – right tackle Darnell Wright, defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr., cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, and linebacker Noah Sewell – are starters or will see a similar workload.
Another, running back Roschon Johnson, figures to have a role, albeit potentially a niche one.
The sixth player from that list, CB Terell Smith, has starting experience but is out for the season with a knee injury. That is a 60% hit rate for Poles in his second draft class as the top decision-maker in the room.
Poles’ first class had early success but sputtered late, with starters in Kyler Gordon, Jaquan Brisker, and Braxton Jones, as well as reserves in Dominique Robinson and Elijah Hicks.
The Bears still roster five of the 11 players they drafted that year.
The bigger question is whether Poles’ misses – in terms of drafted busts and players passed on – outweigh what he has brought to the team. In that regard, Poles has done well, with only three players (Cairo Santos, Cole Kmet, and Jaylon Johnson) preceding him in Chicago.
Still, drafting well is how great teams maintain their status. The Bears have a 52.4% retention rate over Poles’ first two drafts, which could rise if Pickens and Scott join the practice squad.
It is still too early to judge the 2024 and 2025 classes.
However, Poles’ decision to use one of his five picks in 2024 on a punter was heavily scrutinized. The GM announced on Tuesday that 2025 fifth-round pick Zah Frazier would miss the 2025 season. Frazier is dealing with a preexisting personal issue that they only learned of after the draft.
Poles has drafted four players in the first round. Three have come in the last two seasons. Rookie first-round tight end Colston Loveland joins Odunze and Caleb Williams in that group.
Wright was Poles’ first first-rounder after the exec lacked a first-round pick in the 2022 cycle.
Pickens joins Velus Jones Jr. (2022) as a former top-100 selection that Poles has drafted and the Bears have since cut. None of the other players were in that category. Scott was the highest drafted of the group, and the hit rates on prospects drop precipitously after the opening round.
Bears Big Issue Looms Large as Vikings Tilt Nears
The Bears will host the Minnesota Vikings on “Monday Night Football” to open the 2025 regular season. The matchup should be a good gauge of how well head coach Ben Johnson and crew can address the team’s issue with pre-snap penalties.
They have been plagued by delay of game and false start penalties throughout training camp. The dubious trend continued into the preseason.
It lingered into Tuesday’s practice after Johnson noted it and said they would address it.
The head coach also said there are ways they can help the players. One of those might be when they scale back the playbook for their opponent-specific game plan. Teams do not do that during the preseason.
The Vikings led the league in blitz rate in 2024, per Pro Football Reference.
That could spell trouble for a Bears offense still hurting themselves far too often. They also still do not know for certain who will start at LT.