Skip to main content
Advertising

ChicagoBears.com | The Official Website of the Chicago Bears

5 things you may not know about DJ Moore

New Bears receiver DJ Moore
New Bears receiver DJ Moore

The Bears acquired receiver DJ Moore last month in a blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers. The 6-foot, 210-pounder arrives in Chicago after spending his five NFL seasons with the Panthers, catching 364 passes for 5,201 yards and 21 touchdowns in 80 games.

Here are five things you may not know about Moore:

(1) He was the first receiver selected in the 2018 draft.

"It meant a lot," Moore said. "I worked my way all the way up the board to get to that point, so it was special when I got my name called."

Moore was chosen by the Panthers 24th overall. The only other receiver picked in the first round was Calvin Ridley by the Falcons at No. 26. Receivers selected in the second round were Courtland Sutton by the Broncos (40), Dante Pettis by the 49ers (44), Christian Kirk by the Cardinals (47), Anthony Miller by the Bears (51), James Washington by the Steelers (60) and DJ Chark by the Jaguars (61). 

There was a total of 34 receivers chosen in the 2018 draft. Among them, Moore ranks first in receptions and yards and third in touchdowns behind Ridley (28) and Kirk (25).

(2) Moore scored a touchdown on his first NFL reception.

In the fourth quarter of his second pro game Sept. 16, 2018, in Atlanta, Moore caught a pass from Cam Newton over the middle, broke a tackle and raced to the end zone for a 51-yard touchdown in a 31-24 loss to the Falcons.

"I had a deep in-route," Moore recalled. "I think it was zone coverage. I broke a tackle, stiff-armed one and just zoomed to the end zone. It was amazing. I still have the ball. It's in my basement in Carolina. That's one memory that's always going to be with me."

(3) Moore was also a kicker and punter in high school and can throw a football 70 yards.

At Imhotep Charter High School, Moore earned Pennsylvania Class AAA All-State honors while registering 35 receptions for 1,012 yards and 16 TDs as a senior. But he also handled kicking and punting duties. 

"I was doing it since little league," Moore said. "I was able to do it with no practice. It just came naturally."

Moore indicated that the Panthers knew about his ability to kick and would have turned to him during a 2021 game against the Bills when kicker Zane Gonzalez suffered a quad injury during pregame warmups. But Moore wasn't an option due to an injury of his own. 

"I had a slight hamstring, so I couldn't do it," he said. "But I would've done it."

Asked about former Maryland teammate Jermaine Carter Jr. calling him "a freak athlete" who "can throw the ball 70 yards," Moore conceded: "That's not an exaggeration. I just don't like to brag about it."

Take a look at new Bears receiver DJ Moore in action. In 80 games with the Panthers, Moore has caught 364 passes for 5,201 yards and 21 touchdowns. The 6-0, 210-pounder has also topped 1,100 yards receiving in three straight seasons.

(4) Moore has missed just two games in five NFL seasons, one in 2019 and one in 2020. He appeared in all 17 contests each of the past two years.

"It means a lot, just staying ahead of injuries," Moore said. "Prehab is my main thing instead of rehab because if you're in rehab you're not playing and that's not stability."

Follow new Bears receiver DJ Moore as he takes a bus tour of Chicago, visits Soldier Field for the first time and checks out a Bulls game with teammates Justin Fields, Chase Claypool and Darnell Mooney.

(5) Moore was a member of the National Honor Society in high school.

The new Bears receiver was just as driven to achieve off the field as he was on the field.

"It was big," he said. "I've always been on the honor roll. That was the main thing. Education is everything. Nobody really pushed it on me. I just always did things that I knew were right and felt right to do."

Get an exclusive look inside the Bears' practice facility as new Bears DJ Moore, Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards, DeMarcus Walker, Nate Davis, Travis Homer and P.J. Walker tour the building, meet their new teammates and more during their first days in Chicago.

Advertising