Bears rookies gave the entire world a small taste of their true potential in Ben Johnson’s offense and can be true playoff X-factors
The Chicago Bears top two draft picks are already looking like big-time stars.
The Chicago Bears came up just short on a national stage against the San Francisco 49ers and despite how things looked to end the game, the offense cannot be at fault for that loss on Sunday night.
The Bears proved they have what it takes to have a Super Bowl caliber offense in that game and the production was mainly fueled by the team’s top two rookie draft picks, who continued to make big plays for the offense from start to finish.
Luther Burden III and Colston Loveland proved they can be real difference-makers for Chicago
“Some good performances there, notably by our rookies,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson said after the loss. “Luther had a huge game for us, Colston had a big game for us, I thought Caleb (Williams) played pretty well for the most part taking care of the football and throwing that accurately. That was good to see.”
Johnson is watering it down just a little bit. The performance by Burden and Loveland, especially, was outstanding on Sunday night. Burden led the team with eight receptions for a career-high 138 yards while Loveland led the team with 10 targets turning those into six receptions for 94 yards. Both players also scored on explosive touchdowns early in the game.
That kind of production in that kind of big-game atmosphere from two rookie play-makers is more than encouraging. It’s a warning to the rest of the league, and Sunday was just a small taste of it.
Luther Burden III is well on his way to being the future WR1 for this team, if he’s not already
It was a slow start to the 2025 season for Burden, the team’s second-round draft choice who’s dealt with a few different injuries since being drafted. But, it’s clear Burden has full trust from the coaches and his quarterback with his usage the last few weeks.
In each of the last three games Burden has played, he’s led the team in receiving yards and a big reason why is because of his physical play style needed to be a true No. 1 threat in this league.
“It’s good to have Luther back,” Williams said. “Let’s put it that way. As he said before, it’s a problem for our opponents when you get the ball in his hands. Just giving him a shot, letting him go make plays, give him the best runner ball that I can so that he can go and be explosive and be the player that he is. That’s why we drafted him here.”
On Sunday, Burden was making big plays down the field (such as his 34-yard touchdown) and big plays after the catch on short yardage throws. Every week, this guy is leaving it all out on the field.
“I gave my all out there,” Burden said after the game. “So just tired.”
After the final play, Burden was slow to get up and eventually carted back to the locker room. He still spoke with reporters, which is an encouraging sign, and it’s since been reported that suffered a quad injury, though it’s not believed to be serious, pending additional testing. The hope is that he avoided another injury and can be back on the field this week.
Colston Loveland is going to be a big-time player for a long time in Chicago
As for Loveland, the team’s first-round selection has been more than advertised and continues to impress his team more and more every week.
The Bears drafted Loveland to be a big-time player that’s not going to fold when the lights get bright and we’ve already seen that on display in games such as his walk-off touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals back in Week 9.
When the lights are brightest, this guy keeps on delivering. On Sunday, Loveland had two massive conversions on fourth-down to move the sticks for his team. He’s becoming a three-level threat in the passing game and a major contributor as a blocker as well on a weekly basis at this point.
“Colston’s as steady as they come,” Johnson said last Monday talking with Jeff Joniak on ESPN Chicago. “He’s going to have a huge, a bright future, in this league for a long time. He’s everything that we hoped he was going to be.”
With Burden and Loveland, the Bears have two very promising offensive pieces that can lead this offense for years, and help make some noise in the playoffs to finish out their rookie season.
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