Bears WR Luther Burden III Gets Good News at Monday’s Practice

Chicago Bears rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III rejoined his teammates on the practice field Monday for their first padded practice of 2025 training camp.

According to 247Sports’ Zack Pearson and other local reporters, Burden practiced with the Bears on Monday for the first time since he sustained his hamstring injury in May. He went through individual drills at practice, but he did not participate in team drills.

Burden suffered a hamstring injury during rookie minicamp in early May and missed the rest of the Bears’ offseason program, sitting out OTAs and mandatory minicamp. The Bears had originally believed Burden would return in time for the start of camp, but his hamstring injury lingered and kept him sidelined for the first four practices.

The Bears will hold their next padded practice at 9:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, July 29.

How Quickly Will Luther Burden Make Up Ground?

With Burden now back at practice, the Bears can start figuring out how much he can handle and what role he deserves in their offense during the 2025 NFL regular season.

He is projected to compete for the No. 3 role in the rotation behind starters DJ Moore and Rome Odunze, but he will need to catch up on what he’s missed to the satisfaction of first-year Bears head coach Ben Johnson, who is demanding much from his offense.

In June, Johnson didn’t mince words when talking about how much Burden missed.

“He misses a lot,” Johnson said of Burden’s absence at mandatory minicamp in June. “Any time you’re not out there, if you’re in the training room when the rest of the guys are practicing, you’re losing valuable time; valuable time with your coaches, valuable reps with your teammates, the ability to build the trust that we’re talking about.”

How quickly Burden makes up for lost time and starts building trust with his coaches and teammates, especially quarterback Caleb Williams, will determine how large of a role he earns with the Bears offense early on. He has the potential to seize a Day 1 role, though, if he stays healthy and starts to deliver on his playmaking potential for them.

Bears Still Missing Multiple Rookie Picks at Practice

While Burden is now working back to full participation, the Bears still have a few other absent rookies to monitor as they embark on their first week of padded camp practices.

The Bears did not have either second-round rookie defensive tackle Shemar Turner or fifth-round rookie cornerback Zah Frazier available for Monday’s first padded practice and have not communicated clear expectations for when they could return to the field.

According to The Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs, the Bears are “believed to be bracing” for Turner to miss at least a month after he suffered an ankle sprain during July 23’s first unpadded practice. As Biggs noted, Turner would “almost certainly” have to sit out the preseason and could have difficulty being ready for the start of the 2025 season.

Meanwhile, Frazier has been absent because of a personal issue. The Bears have rightly not shared any details about why Frazier has been away, but it stands to reason that he could return at any time.