LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) 鈥� Luther Burden was hungry when he joined the Chicago Bears. A year later, not much has changed on that front.
He has somewhere he wants to go, and he is determined to reach that level.
鈥淛ust prove, you know, that I am who I say I am. … I鈥檓 that guy,鈥� Burden said Thursday on the second day of organized team activities.
The Bears are believers, and they showed just how much they think of Burden’s potential when they traded veteran receiver to Buffalo in March. With Moore gone, the 22-year-old Burden is expected to take on a more prominent role alongside fellow receiver Rome Odunze and second-year tight end Colston Loveland.
鈥淵eah, I鈥檓 buying Luther Burton stock right now,” coach Ben Johnson said. 鈥淛ust how he鈥檚 approached his offseason, it鈥檚 been electric. It showed up yesterday. He had numerous explosive plays. … So he鈥檚 in a really good spot.鈥�
Burden starred at the University of Missouri before he was selected by Chicago in the second round of last year’s draft. He had 61 catches for 676 yards and six TDs in his final season with the Tigers, despite facing constant double- and triple-team coverage.
He was hampered by a hamstring injury in the run-up to his first training camp with the Bears. But he finished with 47 receptions for 652 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games during his rookie season.
“Every day he goes to work, he knows his ability, and it shows,鈥� running back D鈥橝ndre Swift said.
Burden had just two receptions for 2 yards in his first two NFL games. But he broke out in a 31-14 victory over Dallas in Week 3, finishing with three catches for 101 yards and his first TD. He had a season-high eight receptions for 138 yards and a touchdown in a 42-38 loss at San Francisco on Dec. 28.
He averaged 2.69 yards per route run during the regular season, according to Pro Football Focus, ranking third in the league among wide receivers.
鈥淲hen we drafted him, we saw an explosive athlete who was really dangerous with the ball in his hands. The question was, 鈥楬ow can we get it in his hands?鈥欌�� Johnson said. 鈥淭he easy things to do are screens or short throws, but I think there鈥檚 a lot more to his game that we鈥檝e worked to unlock, and he鈥檚 been really receptive to how we can get that done.鈥�
Burden said Moore played a big role in his development.
鈥淛ust seeing how he takes care of his body, how he prepares himself for practice, games, stuff like that,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd just picking his brain. It was great.鈥�
Burden said he feels someone has to step up with Moore gone, and he prepared for his second year in the NFL by spending much of his offseason at the Bears’ facility. He wanted to get bigger, stronger and faster, along with more comfortable with the playbook.
He thinks his familiarity with the system is already helping him play faster this time around.
鈥淚 feel it helps a lot because if you鈥檙e thinking about what you鈥檝e gotta do, you can鈥檛 even focus on what the defense is in,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e trying to focus on what you鈥檝e gotta do. If you already know what you鈥檝e gotta do, I feel like you鈥檒l have a better plan of how to attack their defense.鈥�
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