Overview
- Burden had four catches for 130 yards and a touchdown on Thursday night as the Chicago Bears beat the New England Patriots 30-24 to move to 5-2.
- Quarterback Caleb Williams called Burden a “problem child” and said the team wants to keep getting him the ball, reflecting growing quarterback support for a larger role.
- Head coach Ben Johnson had publicly backed Burden all offseason and now faces play-calling choices about how to increase Burden’s touches without hurting other weapons.
- Tight end Cole Kmet left the game with an apparent right-knee injury and was carted off, creating a developing availability question that could shift targets to Burden, Colston Loveland or rookie Sam Roush.
- Through seven games Burden has 31 catches on 48 targets for 361 yards, and the Week 8 trip to Seattle will be a key test of whether the Bears integrate him more regularly into game plans.