After baseball stole much of the headlines in the sports world today with the trade deadline, the NFL and the Chicago Bears took it right back. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Bears and Pro Bowl receiver DJ Moore agreed to a four-year, $110 million extension. $82.6 million of that deal will be fully guaranteed and his new contract will run until 2029, when Moore will still just be 32 years old.
Moore finished his first season with the Chicago Bears after getting traded away by the Panthers in the haul Chicago got for Carolina to draft Bryce Young No. 1 in 2023. Behind a carousel of Justin Fields and Tyson Bagent at quarterback, Moore set new career highs in receptions (96), yards (1,364), touchdowns (8), and catch percentage (70.6%).
Moore set some NFL and Bears history with this deal, as he became the first receiver ever to have the first 10 years of his career guaranteed and he now owns the largest contract in franchise history. I can already hear Packers (yes, YOU MJ), Lions, and Vikings fans lambasting this deal as an overpay, with the former Maryland standout earning $27.5 million per year. While that is a lot of money, Moore is still only the 7th highest-paid wide receiver in the league and that will change once the Dallas Cowboys CeeDee Lamb and San Francisco 49ers Brandon Aiyuk get their pay-days. It was a sound move by Bears GM Ryan Pace to get out ahead of the market so that by the time other players like Deebo Samuel, Tee Higgins, D.K. Metcalf, and Terry McLaurin are due for their next contract, Moore's will look more and more like the steal that it already is.
I haven't even mentioned the biggest part of this deal. This will lock up Moore throughout Caleb Williams' rookie contract, guaranteeing Williams will always have his No. 1 target. The main goal of this season and at least the four to follow is to make sure you give every opportunity to make Caleb Williams the quarterback everyone thinks (myself included) he can be. To many more touchdowns between Caleb Williams and DJ Moore this season and beyond.
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