Getty Bears general manager Ryan Poles has some huge decisions lying ahead in 2023.
Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has some huge decisions looming after the conclusion of the 2022 season.
While Poles is sure to remake the roster in free agency and potentially via trade, there are also several players set to be due for contract extensions. Two-time second-team All-Pro linebacker Roquan Smith and top running back David Montgomery are two of those players, but one emerging star on the team might be a bigger priority for Poles.
Wide receiver Darnell Mooney is in his third season with the Bears and he has become one of the key cogs in Chicago’s offense. Mooney, a 2020 fifth-round pick out of Tulane, is also a favorite target of second-year quarterback Justin Fields. The two have developed a solid chemistry, meeting frequently this past offseason to further hone their rapport.
Considering what Heavy’s NFL insider Matt Lombardo has been hearing from his sources, Mooney is one player Poles and company may choose to build around.
Bears & Darnell Mooney Have ‘Significant’ Interest in Extension
Mooney is off to a bit of a slow start over the first six games this season, but he’s starting to warm up lately. After catching just four passes for 27 yards over his first three games, Mooney has hauled in 13 passes for 214 yards in his last three contests, including this Catch of the Year candidate:
MOONEY!! WHAT A CATCH!!
The 25-year-old receiver is coming off a 2021 campaign that saw him lead the Bears in targets (140), receptions (81), receiving yards (1,055) and touchdown catches (4). He was Chicago’s second-leading receiver as a rookie in 2020 (61 catches, 631 yards and four touchdowns), and his 61 receptions were the most all-time by a Bears rookie wide receiver.
It’s likely the young wideout could be rewarded for that production in the future. Mooney may “be on the cusp of calling the Windy City home for years to come,” according to Heavy’s NFL insider Matt Lombardo.
“Multiple league sources told Heavy that the Bears and Mooney have significant mutual interest in getting an extension done,” Lombardo wrote in his weekly mailbag column on October 14. “However, Chicago is not permitted to actually sign Mooney to a new deal until the conclusion of his third season, which is this year.”
What Could a Darnell Mooney Extension Look Like?
Spotrac has Mooney’s projected market value at $18.9 million per season, which would equate to a four-year, $75.7 million extension. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Mooney sign a deal similar to that.
There’s legitimate debate about whether Mooney is a No. 1 wide receiver in the league, and it’s fair to argue that based on the numbers alone, he’s not quite there yet. But he has been WR1 on a Bears team sorely in need of talent at the position and his chemistry with Fields might be enough to help him secure a future in Chicago.
Mooney is fresh from the Bears’ 12-7 Week 6 loss to the Washington Commanders, where he had an opportunity to catch the game-winner, but literally came up inches short:
Darnell Mooney comes literally inches away from the game-winning touchdown. Instead, the Commanders take over on downs and defeat the Bears 12-7.
The young wideout knows he needs to make that play if he wants to be perceived as a true No. 1 receiver. “I just got to close the game for us,” Mooney said after the loss. “If I want to be that player, I want to be that guy for our team, I got to make that play.”
There’s still a long way to go before the regular season concludes, and Mooney will surely have more chances to prove his worth, but it looks like he could be a fixture on offense for the Bears for years to come.