Bears rookie WR Luther Burden III sends a strong message to the rest of the league for passing on him following his first day of practice
One of the best value selections in the entire 2025 NFL Draft occurred in the second-round when wide receiver Luther Burden III was still on the board with the 39th overall selection.Despite doing minimal pre-draft work on the Missouri standout, the Chicago Bears made the easy decision to add the versatile play-maker to Ben Johnson's […]
One of the best value selections in the entire 2025 NFL Draft occurred in the second-round when wide receiver Luther Burden III was still on the board with the 39th overall selection.
Despite doing minimal pre-draft work on the Missouri standout, the Chicago Bears made the easy decision to add the versatile play-maker to Ben Johnson's offense, regardless if wide receiver was a need at that point or not.
"I'm not surprised by anything in the draft anymore," Bears head coach Ben Johnson explained on Friday following the first day of rookie minicamp. "I was very excited when he slid to us. Nothing that happened today would make me feel any different."
During the pre-draft process, many considered Burden to be a potential first-round selection but his production decline in 2024 from what he did in 2023 likely turned teams away from selecting him in the Top-32, and again during the first six selections of Day 2.
The unexpected fall did nothing to discourage Burden's mentality.
"All I need is me to believe in myself," Burden said on Friday speaking with reporters. "I don't need everybody else to believe in me. As long as I believe in myself, I'm going to handle business."
Burden ended up being the sixth wide receiver selected in the class (counting Travis Hunter), and that's something that will only add more fuel to Burden's fire going into his rookie contract and beyond.
"That's staying with me forever," Burden added. "Everybody who passed up on me gotta pay."
That's always the best mentality you want to hear out of your rookies. Even after not being selected in the first-round, Burden was on the practice field at Missouri working out because that's just the kind of player he is.
Landing in Chicago is the perfect situation for Burden. He gets the opportunity to play with an innovative play-caller, an established young quarterback, and two other top receivers ahead of him at the position. That's a low pressure environment for him to grow into a role with the Bears.
"We're all excited, it's going to be a huge year for the Chicago Bears," Burden said. "Can't wait to get to work with those guys."
