Bears Bullets has been a morning staple at BN for the better part of a decade, and Luis has led it every step of the way. As we’ve expanded our Bears coverage, one thing became clear: there’s more happening around Halas Hall than one edition can hold. So with rookies reporting this weekend and Training Camp officially underway, Bears Bits is graduating from occasional to every afternoon — something I hinted at over the summer. Like the Bears, we’re just getting started.
I’ve been working on Training Camp previews this week, and I gotta tell ya, it’s been a nice change of pace. It finally feels like we’re back. I spilled 1,000-plus words each into a handful of position groups this week, all of which are live (quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, cornerbacks, and safeties), but my favorite thus far, the one where I really found myself in the weeds and feeling good, was the wide receivers preview.
From DJ Moore’s departure to Rome Odunze’s hopeful bounce-back campaign, Luther Burden III’s rising star, newcomers like Zavion Thomas and Kalif Raymond, and everything in between, this group is going to be as compelling as any to monitor, and getting into the hows and whys this week really got the juices flowing for me.2026 Chicago Bears Training Camp Preview: Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III and the Wide Receivers t.co/Z7akJ5tKEA
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) July 23, 2026 I’ve said it a few times here; I believe Burden is heading for big things, and I don’t think it’s going to take him long to get there. With DJ Moore’s targets up for grabs, and Burden fully entrenched as a key player in Ben Johnson’s offense heading into camp, there’s no reason to believe that Burden won’t become a legit star at the position in the not-too-distant future. Luis was on 104.3 the Score on Thursday with Leila Rahimi and Marshall Harris, and he predicted that Burden would not only lead the team in receiving yards, but lead the NFL. That’s a spicy prediction, and it got me thinking: what does Burden have to do to be in that conversation this season?More: 2026 Chicago Bears Training Camp Preview: Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III and the Wide Receivers
If the last five years hold true, he’ll need to crack the 1,700-yard mark. In each of the last five seasons, the NFL’s leading receiver in yardage has had more than 1,700 yards, and no fewer than 119 catches. He finished his rookie season with 47 catches for 652 yards, but his season line undersells where he ascended to in the offense down the stretch: 42 targets over the final seven games, 31 catches, 430 yards. His per-game receiving output more than doubled, from 27.8 yards to 61.4. Only once in that stretch, Week 18 against Detroit, did his targets dip below five. Stretch that role across a full season, and the picture changes fast. At six targets a game over 17 games, Burden projects to roughly 102 targets, 75 catches and 1,044 yards. With DJ Moore’s 85 targets vacated, there’s a real argument that Burden clears that bar comfortably. Chicago Bears WR Luther Burden. | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images But leading the league is a different question, and it’s worth noting the gap. The last five receiving leaders averaged 1,811 yards, and none finished below 1,700: Cooper Kupp’s 1,947 in 2021, Justin Jefferson’s 1,809 in 2022, Tyreek Hill’s 1,799 in 2023, Ja’Marr Chase’s 1,708 in 2024, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 1,793 last season. Every one of them caught at least 119 passes. Here’s the wrinkle in Burden’s breakout: it was entirely volume, not efficiency. He averaged 13.87 yards per catch before the final seven games and 13.88 after. His usage transformed; his production per touch didn’t move at all. At his established 10.24 yards per target, reaching 1,811 yards would require roughly 177 targets, which is more than Kupp saw in 2021, and more than any receiver in the last five years. Which means a shot at the top spot on the yardage leaderboard would require Burden to get more explosive, not just busier (and in fairness to Lu, he said as much during his hit with Leila and Marshall). I think, in Johnson’s offense, where Colston Loveland and Rome Odunze also exist, somewhere around 1,200 yards is probably more realistic. Either way, it’s going to be fun to watch Burden’s sophomore campaign unfold. In other news, it’s possible Matt Nagy needs to work for Andy Reid in Kansas City …Giants OC Matt Nagy on physical & tough portion of "Physical, Tough, Smart, Detailed" pic.twitter.com/gaMZ4zluNF
— Giants Nation Show (@GiantsNationPod) July 22, 2026 Football is back, and so is the BN Bears podcast, in its regular weekly form. Today’s episode featured our picks for players with the most to gain and lose in training camp and the preseason. But before we got into that, we touched on Caleb Williams checking in at No. 51 on the NFL’s Top 100 list, which led to a discussion on why Bo Nix and Williams aren’t close when it comes to skill and performance.Do you agree with where Caleb Williams landed on the NFL's Top 100 list?Ep. 35 of the BN Bears Podcast, presented by @obvious_shirts, is live!Apple: t.co/1RHDAfc1CmSpotify: t.co/1ku8XNSbURYT: t.co/wJJ2RDww3Y pic.twitter.com/48sAXcfcNJ
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) July 24, 2026THE BN BEARS PODCAST LIVES HERE: Apple | Spotify | YouTube
Spoiler alert: I went with cornerback Tyrique Stevenson as the Bears player with the most to lose during camp. Stevenson has been a mixture of very good and very bad (with not much in between) during his time in Chicago, and I think that a slow start to camp could lead to Malik Muhammad and/or Terell Smith finding themselves in the driver’s seat for Stevenson’s CB2 job. We’ll wrap this up with some notable news around the NFL, and start with Patrick Mahomes, who was cleared to practice with the team during training camp. Mahomes is recovering from a torn ACL and LCL in December, but it’s starting to look like there’s a chance he could be ready to go by Week 1. Former CBS analyst Tony Romo finds himself in some trouble …Burlington native and former NFL star Tony Romo was arrested last night in Milwaukee County, accused of driving under the influence. t.co/rsqnTSjHvg pic.twitter.com/GPEuhrSPzp
— WISN 12 NEWS (@WISN12News) July 24, 2026 And finally, while I would never wish an injury on anyone, I’m certainly not going to complain about Nic Scourton not being lined up opposite Chicago’s offense in the Bears’ Week 1 matchup with the Carolina Panthers.Carolina placed LB Nic Scourton, who tore his ACL during the first training camp practice, on injured reserve.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 24, 2026Hence then, the article about bears bits can burden lead the league stevenson s hot seat more was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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