On Thursday, March 5, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported a huge trade. The Chicago Bears agreed to send wide receiver D.J. Moore and a 2026 fifth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills for a 2026 second-round pick.
This trade is a win for both sides. For the Bills, they get a new wide receiver one. As for the Bears, they can open up more playing time for Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III.
From Buffalo’s perspective, there’s a lot to be excited about. Josh Allen will have a proven talent at wide receiver outside of Khalil Shakir. Additionally, Moore will be paired back up with his former offensive coordinator, Joe Brady.
Familiarity With Joe Brady
The most intriguing part of this deal for the Bills is the reunion between D.J. Moore and Joe Brady. Brady was Moore’s offensive coordinator in 2020 and 2021 in Carolina. In those years, Moore put up back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons while hauling in eight touchdowns. The Panthers didn’t have much team success while the two were together. However, Brady helped Moore officially break out and make a name for himself in the NFL.
Since their time together, Moore has had nothing but praise for his former offensive coordinator. Just a month ago, during an interview with Yahoo Sports’ Matt Harmon, Moore said Buffalo’s offense “has been electric.” Moore added, “He might just open it up this year,” when asked about Brady’s offense going into next season.
Despite not being together for over four seasons now, the respect between the two hasn’t been lost. Furthermore, their dynamic will likely make it easy for Brady to quickly integrate Moore into the Bills’ new look offense next season.
With Moore, Shakir, and Kincaid, the Bills look to have a respectable group of pass catchers for the first time since trading Stefon Diggs. Additionally, with Josh Allen at the helm, Moore should be able to thrive.
Familiarity with Joe Brady’s offense and the best quarterback of his career so far could make this the perfect situation for Moore.
More Help Coming?
D.J. Moore will likely slot in as the Bills’ wide receiver one going into next season. However, Tony Pauline reported that the team was still looking to add more at the position.
The Bills reportedly liked former Packers’ wide receiver Romeo Doubs before he signed with the Patriots on Tuesday. While there’s still interest in adding more depth at the position, they’ll have to turn their attention elsewhere. Already, though, they have been linked to other options, such as Hollywood Brown or Christian Kirk.
Brown or Kirk could complement the Bills’ existing offensive weapons nicely. Another target to ease Moore and Shakir’s burden is exactly what the team needs.
If they fail to bring another wide receiver in during free agency, they could always pivot to the draft. Some interesting prospects the Bills may target are K.C. Concepcion and Omar Cooper Jr.
Regardless of how the Bills choose to get their receiver, they should be getting one of a specific type: another outside receiver. Khalil Shakir has secured the slot position, and Moore will be taking up one of the two outside spots. Thus, all they need is another bigger receiver to play opposite Moore, who can be more of a jump ball target, with Moore only being 6-foot.
When factoring in their moves so far with a healthy Dalton Kincaid and last season’s top rushing offense, there’s a lot to be excited about. It’s still early in the NFL’s offseason, and the Bills have a lot of work left to do on the defensive side of the ball. But addressing arguably their biggest need early on will allow them to shift their focus to the draft.
What’s Next?
While D.J. Moore might not have been most Bills fans’ first option for a big move at the wide receiver position, the fit is perfect. He knows Joe Brady’s offense, fills a huge need the team had, and has proven in two different places that he can be productive.
Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane came into the offseason knowing the roster had a lot of holes, and he got going early. Addressing this position was the first thing he needed to get done.
As for the rest of the offseason, the Bills still need to find a new safety partner for Cole Bishop. They also need a replacement for David Edwards at guard, and depth at the linebacker and edge rusher positions.
With a splash move like D.J. Moore already done, it’ll be interesting to see how creative Beane gets to fill out the rest of the roster. Nevertheless, the addition of Moore alone already has other NFL teams trembling.
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