When a game is lost and a season ends, disappointment eventually gives way to blame, and Bears wide receiver DJ Moore was under scrutiny for his effort on the play that doomed his team Sunday in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Rams in the divisional round of the playoffs.
In a tie game with the Bears just past midfield and needing only a field goal to win, quarterback Caleb Williams threw downfield for Moore toward the right sideline. The throw was well short of where Moore was headed, and Rams safety Kam Curl dived to intercept it.
The Rams then drove for the winning field goal to book a spot in the NFC Championship Game.
If it were a different player, perhaps there would’ve been more benefit of the doubt, but for all the impact Moore has made with the Bears, he also has produced a lot of bad body language. So when Moore gave even the appearance of taking his foot off the gas, he was a popular target.
Whether a legitimate defense or loyally covering for a teammate, Williams backed Moore on Monday as players cleaned out their lockers and said the disconnect was simply “just a miscommunication” or misunderstanding between the two as Williams looked to improvise.
As Moore ran, Williams wanted him to “flatten” the route and run underneath Curl into the open space between him and fellow Rams safety Darious Williams racing upfield. Moore, however, had open space leading to the end zone and continued on the original route.
“His route is to go deep and attack that angle, which he did,” Williams said. “[I] thought we were going to go under the safety at that point. It didn’t happen that way.”
On replay, Moore appeared to hesitate once he recognized that Williams was throwing underneath, which is a more likely explanation than a veteran player with a reputation as a hard worker loafing in a critical moment.
Regardless, the lesson learned, Williams added, is that he and his receivers need to work harder at “being on the same page” in advance of those instances. Chemistry is crucial when adjusting on the fly.
Bears coach Ben Johnson didn’t have a concrete diagnosis of the error Sunday night and won’t be available to reporters again until later this week. All he said after the game was, “I did see space,” without specifying whether he meant in front of Curl or behind him, and, “I did think as the play was going on, ‘Oh crap, we’ve got something [good],’ but great play by [Curl].”
Moore was not available in the locker room after the game or during locker cleanout. Normally one of the most accessible players on the team, he also didn’t talk to reporters last week leading up to the Rams game.
Health could’ve been a factor in the breakdown on that interception and in not being available to reporters Sunday or Monday. Moore had been working through a knee injury for weeks and was checked for a concussion Sunday after a hard hit to the head by Curl in the third quarter.
Moore finished the game with five catches for 52 yards and a touchdown, making a great catch behind him on a pass to the end zone that was redirected by Rams linebacker Omar Speights’ tip.
Moore has never missed a game in three seasons with the Bears and was their leading receiver in 2023 and ’24, earning him a contract extension that made him their highest-paid player this season. He caught 50 passes for 682 yards and six touchdowns and ran 15 times for 79 yards and a touchdown in the regular season, plus 12 catches for 112 yards and two touchdowns in the playoffs.
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