Caleb Williams confirms the obvious about final play, and it could have lasting implications as Bears face decision time with DJ Moore
The Chicago Bears have a big decision looming with WR DJ Moore after how this season went.
The Chicago Bears’ magical season abruptly ended with an overtime loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs.
While the game ended with a walk-off field goal by the Rams to advance to the NFC Championship Game, the final blow occurred when quarterback Caleb Williams threw an interception on Chicago’s first and only drive of overtime with a chance to win it.
Williams’ pass was intended for veteran wide receiver DJ Moore and, if completed, would have set the Bears up in field goal range to potentially walk the game off themselves with a field goal. Instead, the pass was picked off by Rams’ safety Kamren Curl after a clear mix-up between Williams and Moore.
“I had DJ going up over top of all of it. Just miscommunication between him and I,” Williams told reporters after the game. “Tried to flatten him off under the safety, and he kept it vertical from what I saw in the moment.”
Looking back at the replay, it was just classic Moore. That was a lackadaisical route in that situation, and Moore gave up on the play after seeing that the ball in the air was in a different spot from where he was running. Moore tried to do his own thing in a critical moment, and it’s nothing we haven’t seen before.
After the interception happened, it’s easy to see where the blame should go for that season-ending moment after seeing what some former NFL players had to say on social media.
DJ Moore’s time with the Bears needs to come to an end after the way this season went
This has just been a frustrating season when it comes to the team’s highest-paid offensive player. At times, Moore has delivered in big moments for this team, such as his two game-winning touchdowns against the Green Bay Packers. But, on a down-to-down basis, he has not been a reliable player for this offense and certainly not for the price he’s paid.
Moore ended the regular season with 50 receptions for 682 yards and six touchdowns as the team’s top wide receiver. Looking beyond those stats, Moore was eventually overshadowed in the passing game by rookie tight end Colston Loveland and rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III, outside of specifically designed plays to get him the ball. And he would have been overshadowed by Rome Odunze, too, if not for Odunze’s stress fracture that limited his 2025-26 production.
It’s been clear that something is up between Williams and Moore the last two seasons because those two have never had the connection Williams has with his other pass catchers.
Looking ahead, Moore is expected to have a $28.5 million cap hit in each of the next three seasons, which would be the highest on the entire team. That kind of pay simply isn’t worth the production he had this season, and that’s not even factoring in the lack of trust and constant lack of effort.
It’s time for the Bears to part ways, and the easiest way to do so will be in a trade. Will the Bears get high compensation? Probably not because of the contract. But freeing up that money and finding a replacement you can actually trust has to be in the best interest of the team’s future.
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