There is no denying that the Chicago Bears crushed the 2025 NFL Draft. Colston Loveland is a perfect fit in Ben Johnson’s offense, and he should have an immediate impact. Plus, the Day 2 selections of Ozzy Trapilo (Boston College) and Shemar Turner (Texas A&M) help beef up the trenches. Those three picks alone would constitute a strong draft for any team. But it’s what they did at the top of Round 2 that makes this a special class.
The Bears did not have a major need at receiver, especially after spending the No. 9 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on Rome Odunze. But that didn’t shy them away from taking a highly-ranked player when they were on the clock.
Chicago stole Luther Burden III at pick No. 39 after he had a somewhat disappointing 2024 season. However, Burden is just one of six receivers ever to post a 1,200-yard receiving season in the SEC during his freshman or sophomore season. He was a consensus top-10 selection in the draft before poor quarterback play at Missouri tanked his draft value.
But the Bears are now the ones reaping the benefits of a down season, and they potentially stole the best receiver in the class on Day 2. Just how good of a pick was this by Chicago? According to Matt Miller of ESPN, it was his favorite pick in the entire class and it was his biggest steal. Here is a snippet of what Miller had to say about the selection of Burden in Round 2:
"Burden was my top wide receiver in the class (I'm counting Travis Hunter as a two-way player), and he landed in a great situation with the Bears and new coach Ben Johnson. Burden's yards-after-catch ability is terrific, and Johnson's scheme has been elite at creating space for wide receivers. Burden likely starts as a slot receiver with DJ Moore and Rome Odunze flanking him, but he thrived in that alignment at Missouri."Matt Miller, ESPN
Burden was the No. 29 overall player on the NFL Draft Expert consensus board, but he was No. 18 overall on The Athletic’s consensus board. The NFL Draft expert consensus board is more predictive as to where players will land, while The Athletic’s is more of a talent-based board. But one thing is clear: almost everyone believes that Burden was one of the top 30 players in this class, and with the positional value of receivers, the Bears stole him at No. 39.
The expectation is that Burden will be the starting slot receiver for the Bears during the 2025 season, but he could eventually move outside in the near future, depending on the play of D.J. Moore. Burden is one of the best receivers after the catch we’ve ever seen come out of the college ranks, and you can bet that Ben Johnson is going to find creative ways to get him the ball in space.
The Bears are setting Burden up for success as they aren’t asking him to be the No. 1 receiver or the focal point of the passing game right away. Instead, they are going to ease him into the offense and design touches for him to be productive right away. That is how you set up a rookie to properly develop, and this couldn’t have been a better landing spot for the former SEC star. This is a perfect fit for the player and the team, so don’t be shocked if we see immediate results from Burden right away..