Bears drawn to Luther Burden III’s versatility, competitive nature

While Burden mainly saw action as a slot receiver at Missouri, the Bears will expect him to play both inside and outside, a responsibility he is ready to assume, adding: “I feel like I fit perfect in their offense.”

“We see him as a guy that can play both, honestly,” Ackley said. “With what we’re trying to build with Coach Johnson, it’s multiple, everybody moving around, so you can’t get a beat. It can open the offense up. So, he adds right into that. I think he has the route running and physicality to win outside, I think he has the separation ability and toughness to win inside.”

Burden now joins a receiver room that includes DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Tyler Scott and Olamide Zaccheaus, but the most familiar face he’ll see at Halas Hall is quarterback Caleb Williams.

While the pair have never actually played together, they were slated to be teammates at Oklahoma in 2021 before Burden decommitted and chose Missouri. Since then, Burden has kept an eye on Williams and watched a majority of his games.

Burden said he is “a big fan” of Williams and eager to get to work with last year’s No. 1 overall selection.

“I know a lot about [Caleb],” Burden said. “Me and him were supposed to be teammates before. So the world works in mysterious ways. So, I’m excited to finally unite with him and get to work.”