The Chicago Bears will have north of $100 million in salary cap space to work with for the 2023 season, where general manager Ryan Poles will look to bolster arguably the NFL’s weakest roster.
Poles will no doubt look to free agency and the NFL draft to address holes on the roster. But he’ll also look internally to re-sign some promising young players.
That includes wide receiver Darnell Mooney, who’s in the middle of his third NFL season. Mooney has been a bright spot on offense over the last couple of years, and he’s someone Poles could look to pair with quarterback Justin Fields for the next few years.
According to Matt Lombardo of Heavy.com, the Bears and Mooney have “significant mutual interest” in getting a contract extension done. Negotiations can officially begin after Mooney concludes this 2022 season.
Multiple league sources told Heavy that the Bears and Mooney have significant mutual interest in getting an extension done. However, Chicago is not permitted to actually sign Mooney to a new deal until the conclusion of his third season, which is this year.
Wide receiver is one of the biggest holes on this roster, and it’s one Poles will surely look to address from a multitude of avenues. There aren’t any big-name receivers slated to hit free agency, but the Bears should have a top first-round pick, which could be used to address a huge offensive need like receiver or offensive line.
Mooney still has a long way to go to prove he can be a No. 1 receiver, so it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see Poles go out and get one of those and relegate Mooney to a WR2 role.
The former fifth-round pick recorded his first 1,000-yard season last year, but he’s been pretty quiet in an abysmal passing offense. Mooney has 17 receptions for 241 yards with no touchdowns through six games. Not exactly on par to repeat his 1,000-yard season. But he’s still been a solid contributor on offense.
According to Spotrac, Mooney’s current projected market value is $18.9 million per year, which is in line with the likes of the Commanders’ Terry McLaurin, Panthers’ DJ Moore and Chargers’ Mike Williams.
