Bears HC Ben Johnson holds true to his word by giving more opportunities to a player who’s earned it in Week 11
Luther Burden III got a higher usage up-tick in Week 11.
Drops were a major issue for the Chicago Bears back in Week 10 against the New York Giants and while head coach Ben Johnson believed the issue to be an isolated concern, it did prompt the team to make one change going into Week 11 on offense.
Even though the drop issue was isolated when it came to the six different ones in Week 10, wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus was a repeat offender and increased his total to eight drops on the season during that game last week.
In the meantime, the Bears continued to get efficient play from rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III and it was clear a more defined role needed to be adjusted for the second-round pick.
“It’s a trust level between the coaches and the player. It’s a trust level between the quarterback and the receiver. It continues to ascend,” Johnson said of Burden last Monday. “He’s been very productive when we’ve been able to get the ball in his hands. There’s a strong argument that we should get it to him more.”
In Week 11 against the Minnesota Vikings, Johnson held true to his word and it should be something that continues throughout the remainder of the season.
Luther Burden III took over Olamide Zaccheaus’ role, out-snapping the veteran in Week 11 win
On Sunday, Burden finished the game with 33 offensive snaps for the second game in a row, the highest offensive snap total he’s had so far this season. The production wasn’t as good as the week before with Burden recording three receptions for 27 yards on five targets.
Prior to Week 11, Burden had been one of the team’s most reliable pass catchers when it came to his receptions and targets but he had one bad drop against the Vikings. Even still, the rookie played 61% of the routes compared to 19% for Zaccheaus.
With Zaccheaus on a one-year contract and Burden being a rookie, this was always going to be the expectation once Burden started developing more trust from the coaches and his quarterback.
“Luther is a special talent, and he’s a he’s a young cat. He’s growing,” quarterback Caleb Williams said. “So that relationship between him and I is going to grow constantly throughout the years. And so I think that’s just a little glimpse, last week, one of the biggest moments of the game, the ball goes to Luther on a 25-yard curl stop route.
“And so that trust, that belief, I know who we have, what we have. And when I drop back and these guys run these routes and the spacing and all of these things, of these things are right, and they’re out there. Like I said, the trust, the belief, the special talent that I know that we have is there. And it’s a confidence builder for me to be able to trust them and put the ball in the right spot at the right time.”
Burden has also been making the most of the opportunities he’s been given after the catch, which has been the real difference-maker in his game. Entering Week 11, Burden’s yards per route run ranked third in the NFL among WRs with 50+ routes, trailing just Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Puka Nacua.
It’s great to finally see the rookie get a more extended and defined role in the offense considering he has one more yard than Zaccheaus on 27 less targets this season. He’s deserved a bigger role and it should lead to some bigger moments for the rookie to shine down the stretch.
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