The NFL trade deadline has come and gone, but some players who were on the block and stayed put may simply be playing a waiting game until the new league year begins in March.
One such player is Chicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore. ESPN’s Bill Barnwell named him as perhaps the most likely star-level candidate to switch teams out of nowhere. And while that didn’t ultimately happen, the fit issues and Moore’s superfluousness from talent and financial perspectives in Chicago remain clear heading into the second half of head coach Ben Johnson’s first season.
“If there’s a prominent player who could unexpectedly make sense as a potential trade candidate at the deadline for me, it’s Moore,” Barnwell wrote on October 30. “The 28-year-old is starting a four-year, $110 million extension next year, but he hasn’t found a consistent role in Ben Johnson’s offense; he is averaging a career-low 47.3 receiving yards per game.”
And Barnwell’s argument is not that Moore isn’t talented, quite the opposite. It’s simply that the Bears may not really need Moore, who is taking up a huge portion of the team’s salary cap over the next several years.
“I get the sense that Johnson’s preferred option would be to work with 12 personnel when tight ends Cole Kmet and Colston Loveland are healthy or work Luther Burden III into the mix alongside Olamide Zaccheaus and Rome Odunze in three-WR sets,” Barnwell continued. “A trade during the offseason would make more sense, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Moore became the odd man out in Chicago.”
DJ Moore Should Have Strong Trade Market in 2026 Offseason
GettyWide receiver DJ Moore of the Chicago Bears.
Moore’s trade value should be in the range of a Day 2 pick this offseason, which could slot in as a late second-rounder or third-round asset.
He has four 1,000-yard seasons on his resumé and can serve as a No. 1 option with a team like the Denver Broncos, who are 7-2 and appear likely to have Super Bowl aspirations for multiple years to come.
However, he may be best utilized as a high-end No. 2 in a situation like that of the Steelers, assuming that quarterback Aaron Rodgers sees enough potential in wideout DK Metcalf and company to return for his age-42 campaign, which would put off what will inevitably be a rebuild in Pittsburgh at some point sooner than later.
Bears Held Off on Splashy Trade for Edge-Rusher, Likely to Seek One Next Offseason
GettyDefensive end Montez Sweat of the Chicago Bears.
On the other side of the coin, Chicago wasn’t a significant buyer ahead of the deadline, either. The only deal the team made was to add edge-rusher Joe Tryon-Shoyinka via a deal with the Cleveland Browns to replace injured defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo.
Odeyingbo suffered an Achilles tear and is out for the season. The Bears have struggled to pressure QBs for much of the year, so the team made a small swing by adding Tryon-Shoyinka, a former first-round bust selection of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a sixth/seventh-round pick swap.
Chicago could have made a bigger move and sent the Cincinnati Bengals a second-rounder for Trey Hendrickson, but will instead address the position next offseason. A trade is less likely, as the Bears own their first-round pick in 2026 and could look to add to an expensive roster slot through the relatively inexpensive path of the NFL draft.
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