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Courtney Cronin, ESPN Staff WriterNov 6, 2024, 04:48 PM ET
- Courtney Cronin joined ESPN in 2017, originally covering the Minnesota Vikings before switching to the Chicago Bears in 2022. Courtney is a frequent panelist on Around the Horn and host of Best Week Ever on ESPN Radio. She also co-hosts The Chicago Bears Podcast on ESPN 1000. She previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News as a multimedia sports journalist.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The chemistry between Caleb Williams and DJ Moore is not where the Chicago Bears teammates say they expected it to be through eight games.
“Obviously, it’s not in a place — from the past games — where we would like it,” Williams said Wednesday. “Both of us. It’s frustrating because you’ve got a guy that’s so special, and not being able to connect and hit on certain passes is frustrating for myself, and I know it’s frustrating for him because, as a wide receiver, especially, you only get but so many chances, so many times the ball comes your way in a game and things like that.”
Moore, a seven-year NFL veteran who is coming off a career year in Chicago, has logged one 100-yard performance in 2024 (five receptions for 105 yards, 2 TDs in Week 5). In back-to-back losses at Washington and Arizona, the star receiver totaled six catches for 60 yards when targeted 11 times.
Between five seasons in Carolina and two in Chicago after being the centerpiece of the Panthers’ trade for the No. 1 pick in 2023, Moore has played with 13 quarterbacks, including Williams. He logged four 1,000-yard seasons in 2019-21 and 2023.
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During his first season with the Bears, Moore finished with 1,364 yards and eight touchdowns while catching passes from former Chicago quarterback Justin Fields and backup Tyson Bagent.
When asked Wednesday why his connection with Williams has taken longer to come to fruition than the one he built with Fields, Moore struggled to find an answer.
“I couldn’t tell you,” Moore said. “I mean, just reps? You can say Justin had more reps when I got here than me and Caleb have, just him being a rookie quarterback and Justin wasn’t a rookie quarterback last year.”
Since his 105-yard performance against the Panthers, Moore has 80 combined receiving yards and zero touchdowns in three games.
Williams said that the key to getting on track with the 27-year-old receiver is stronger communication in games.
“I think talking a little bit more and communicating a little bit more about specifics of ways I see it and the ways he sees it, ways he’s seeing it, and then keep going from there,” the rookie said.
After Williams threw a back-shoulder pass in Arizona when Moore was expecting something altogether different, the receiver said communicating on specific details will help the two solidify their connection.
“Just knowing who we’re going against, the one-on-one matchups that we might have throughout the game and then understanding on the back end, the reads and where we’re at in situations, where he’s going through the read and how fast I’ve got to be or how slow I’ve got to be to stay in his vision,” Moore said. “That’s the little details I can think of.”
Before Chicago’s most recent win, a 35-16 victory against the Jaguars in London on Oct. 13, Moore lauded his quarterback’s assertiveness and ownership of the offense. Williams being “bossy,” according to the receiver, was the key for the Bears’ offense in finding an identity while being able to get its top playmakers involved.
Including the Jaguars game, the Bears totaled 10 touchdowns before their Week 7 bye, and they have notched 24 points since.
“We’ve just got to get back to scoring,” Moore said. “We just had a game where [kicker] Cairo [Santos] had all the points, and that leaves us all with a sour taste in our mouth. We want to go out there and score touchdowns for the team, the fans, the organization, which we need to do at any cost, whether it’s throwing the ball, running the ball, defensive touchdowns. Somebody’s got to score some touchdowns.”
Moore also addressed his brief exit from the Cardinals game when he left the field in the first quarter while a play was still ongoing.
“Tweaked the ankle,” Moore said. “I was coming back because I’d seen Caleb was scrambling. My ankle went in and out. I was already — couldn’t stop, so my momentum took me out of bounds and then I just walked off. The noise, I hear it, seen it. Really didn’t care. It is what it is.”
