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Ben Johnson pours gas on the Luther Burden hype fire

If you’re interested in trying to catch Luther Burden emerging in his second season, you better not wait too long in your draft. The cat is kind of out of the bag, after two days of OTAs.

Specifically, Ben Johnson a quip that will be repeated and noted for the next three-plus months before the season starts.

“I’m buying Luther Burden stock right now,” Johnson said at a press conference. “Just how he’s approached his offseason. It’s been electric. That showed up yesterday. He had numerous explosive plays. I loved how in Phase 2 he was finishing every single rep that he took and that really translated over to yesterday as well. So he’s in a really good spot.”

Burden did not make a huge impact in his rookie season, but he did play a fair amount, catching 47 passes for 652 yards and 2 TDs. He made the Bears comfortable trading DJ Moore. And he’s paired with a nice coach-quarterback combo.

It’s not all that rare for a receiver to emerge in his second season. Since 2015, I see 17 who’ve posted top-30 numbers (PPR scoring) after not putting up top-45 numbers in their first season. (Burden ranked 49th among wide receivers last year.)

WIDE RECEIVERS ASCENDING IN SECOND YEAR
YearPlayerNoYardsTDPPRRkRookie Yr
2015Allen Robinson, Jac.80140014304.0648-548-2
2015Brandin Cooks, N.O.8411389253.61453-550-4
2015John Brown, Ari.6510037209.52548-696-5
2015Allen Hurns, Jac.64103110227.11951-677-6
2016Tyrell Williams, S.D.6910597216.9192-90-1
2016Jamison Crowder, Was.678478199.52559-604-2
2017Robby Anderson, NYJ639417200.01842-587-2
2018Dede Westbrook, Jac.667176183.53027-339-1
2018Corey Davis, Ten.658914183.62934-375-0
2018Chris Godwin, T.B.598427187.22534-525-1
2018Kenny Golladay, Det.7010635207.12228-477-3
2019DJ Chark, Jac.7310088225.81814-174-0
2019Michael Gallup, Dall.6611076212.72433-507-2
2019Courtland Sutton, Den.7211126222.81942-704-4
2021Michael Pittman, Ind.8810826238.61840-503-1
2021Darnell Mooney, Chi.8110555219.72461-631-4
2024Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Sea.10011306253.41063-628-4

I definitely have interest in Burden. I’m just not sure that he’ll still be around when I want to pick him.

In our experts poll (that you’ll see in the magazine), only seven of the 20 experts ranked Burden among their top 20 receivers. My hunch is that when people are putting together their top 20 lists when camps are opening, the number of people slotting Burden in their top 20s will be higher.

—Ian Allan

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