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Bears starting wide receiver DJ Moore.
After securing the walk-off touchdown to win in overtime, Chicago Bears star wide receiver DJ Moore couldn’t resist taking a shot at the Green Bay Packers.
The Bears pulled off the most unlikely of comebacks against the Packers during their Week 16 rematch at Soldier Field, using a successful onside kick to close a 16-6 deficit in the final five minutes and winning on a 46-yard touchdown pass to Moore in overtime.
The win not only avenged the Bears’ Week 14 loss to the Packers at Lambeau Field but also gave them a commanding two-game lead in the NFC North with two weeks left.
“It took a lot. A lot of ups and downs on our side. But we fought to the end, made this s*** happen,” Moore said in his on-field postgame interview with the Fox broadcast team, adding later: “It means a lot. And at the end of the day, it’s F the Packers always.”
DJ Moore Has Stepped Up for Bears Amid WR Injuries
Moore did not have a great performance against the Packers on the first go-around, catching just one of his three targets for a loss of 4 yards, but he has stepped up in a big way in the two weeks since as injuries have hammered the position for the Bears.
With Rome Odunze on the sideline in Week 15, Moore caught four of his five targets for 69 yards and two touchdowns as the Bears cruised to a 31-3 victory over the Cleveland Browns. He did even better against the Packers without Odunze or Luther Burden III, hauling in five catches for a season-high 97 yards to go along with his touchdown.
Moore now leads the Bears in receptions (48) and receiving yards (664) and is tied with Odunze for the most touchdown receptions (six) heading into Week 17’s next matchup.
When the curtain closes on the season, Moore could quite possibly have his lowest total production in his three seasons with the Bears. He would need 50 catches and more than 300 receiving yards over the final two games to match his 2024 numbers. The door is also still open for him to finish with his worst production since his rookie year.
Moore might not care much, though, amid the first winning season of his NFL career.
Will Bears Return Injured WR in Time to Face 49ers?
The Bears made things work with Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus and undrafted rookie Jahdae Walker at the wideout position against the Packers, but will they need to do the same thing on the road against the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) in Week 17’s matchup?
Burden, a 2025 second-round pick, is coming off a week in which he did not practice once for the Bears due to the ankle injury that sidelined him against the Browns, but the team has not expressed any concern that it could keep him out for an extended period. Even still, it is hard to count on him until he returns to the mix on the practice field.
As for Odunze, the Bears could keep him on the sideline for the remaining two games of the regular season. He is dealing with a stress fracture in his foot that he aggravated in pregame warmups against the Browns, and Bears head coach Ben Johnson has said that “all options” are on the table for figuring out what to best address the issue.
As long as that would not mean a stint on injured reserve, Odunze should have a good chance of returning to the mix and playing for the Bears if they reach the playoffs.
Jordan J. Wilson is a sports reporter who covers the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers. He has previously covered all levels of sports — high school, college and pro — for a variety of publications including The Indianapolis Star, The News-Gazette, Springfield State-Journal Register and Peoria Journal Star. More about Jordan J. Wilson
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