I’m going to talk about DJ Moore.

Moore is a 26 year old wide receiver out of Maryland. He spent 5 years with the Carolina Panthers, slowly becoming the top target in Charlotte amidst a string of flop QBs. In 2022, the Panthers signed him post-rookie-contract for 3 more years at $52.3M overall.

This Spring, Carolina traded Moore to the Bears for the 1st overall pick in the draft in order to land Bryce Young, and Moore joined a nightmare offensive situation in Chicago. Consistently a top 15 Fantasy WR, Moore found himself on many preseason “Do Not Draft” lists, part of a talented-yet-dysfunctional receiver room in one of the most toxic franchise environments in the country.

Fast forward to last night: DJ Moore scored 49.0 Fantasy points.

And he’s on Joe’s bench.

This stings, but I want to explain why it makes complete sense that Joe wouldn’t play DJ Moore this week. It’s a recognizable Fantasy story. Benching Moore is something that I probably would have done, in Joe’s position. Most of you would too.

How did we get here? I’ll give you the facts, and then I’ll give you the story.

Here are the Fantasy facts on DJ Moore:

Drafted by Joe in the 9th round of the draft, 65th overall.

DJ Moore’s Fantasy point totals by week:

• W1: 4.5 points (2 receptions, 25 yards, 0 TDs)
• W2: 16.4 points (6 receptions, 104 yards, 0 TDs)
• W3: 13.1 points (3 receptions, 41 yards, 1 TD)
• W4: 27.1 points (8 receptions, 131 yards, 1 TD)
• W5: 49.0 points (8 receptions, 230 yards, 3 TDs)

Yesterday, DJ Moore scored 49.0 Fantasy points on Joe’s bench.

Now here is the story on Moore, from Joe’s perspective:

Week 1: 4.5 points
This went as one might have expected for the 9th round Fantasy draft pick. He was the worst of six WRs on Joe’s roster. There was no way Moore was going to be in the lineup in Week 2.

Week 2: 16.4 points
At 16.4 points, Moore outscored several WRs in Joe’s lineup, but not as much as others on the bench. Don’t forget, too, that this was the weekend of close games. Joe only lost to Jean by 1.8 points. He was one good play away from winning. Understandably, Joe only made two roster substitutions to his starting lineup: upgrade Davante Adams and Najee Harris. Safe moves. Smart moves.

Week 3: 13.1 points
A solid performance, but ranked 5th out of five WRs on Joe’s roster. Y’all, Joe’s lineup is insane at the receiver position. Compared to Adams (42.2 points), J Jefferson (27.9 points), Olave (18.4 points), and hometown boy Sutton (19.1 points), there was no chance DJ Moore is getting in Joe’s lineup the next week.

Week 4: 27.1 points
Chase Claypool stays home because he can’t be a grownup. The Bears drop 21 points on the Broncos in the second quarter, one of DJ Moore’s receptions was a TD, and he brings home 27.1 Fantasy points. Top receiver on Joe’s roster. A breakout week, but this only causes a hard time for Joe…

Week 5: projected to score 14.5 points
Put yourself in Joe’s place. It’s Wednesday of this week and you’re looking ahead to the weekend.

Justin Jefferson and Davante Adams are both up against tough defenses. But their names are Justin Jefferson and Davante Adams, so obviously you’re starting both of them.

Then you have Aiyuk (projected 15.5 points), Olave (projected 15.1 points), Moore (projected 14.5 points), and Sutton (projected 11.7 points). Who would you have started in your FLEX spot?

Would you have started DJ Moore?

• Arguing in favor of starting Moore: he is a headliner receiver coming off a 27.1 point game and his matchup last night was against the Washington Commanders, the league’s worst defense against WRs.
• Arguing against starting Moore: the Bears were 0-4 before last night. All ESPN has talked about this week is how dramatically and unprecedentedly bad Chicago is right now. Justin Fields is the 3rd most sacked QB in the NFL, and barely has enough time to see his receivers before he gets a face-full of turf. And finally, there are two other players on your roster projected to outscore Moore.

Joe decided to start Aiyuk and bench Moore. I completely understand it; a reasonable decision. I probably wouldn’t have played Moore, either.

(And to be honest, I’d continue to be cautious playing Moore in the future, regardless of how well he did last night. Yesterday, Chicago outscored their season average by 3 touchdowns. They put up 40 points against one of the league’s worst defenses. Chicago is still a bad team. There’s no reason to believe that the franchise will be able do this again with any consistency. Moore scored 49.0 points, and that’s an outlier. He’s unlikely to do that again this season. He will remain a risky week-by-week pick, oscillating between disappointing and unbelievable). 

But damn, does it sting to have 49.0 points sitting on your bench by bedtime on Thursday.

Hang in there Joe. Hopefully Shanahan has his way with McCarthy on Sunday and justifies Aiyuk’s place on your lineup.