Getty DJ Moore #2 of the Chicago Bears looks on before the game against the New England Patriots at Soldier Field on November 10, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Safe to say that Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney is looking forward to his matchup with wide receiver D.J. Moore and the Chicago Bears in Week 11.
Following November 13’s practice, McKinney brought up Moore unprompted in the Packers’ locker room while speaking with reporters, referring back to the comments that the Bears’ No. 1 wide receiver had made about him during the 2024 offseason.
Moore had seemed to show McKinney and other NFC North secondaries disrespect during an appearance on the “Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams” in May. Adams had mentioned to Moore how other NFC North teams had “beefed up” their secondaries in the offseason, to which Moore responded with a “Who?” and a “That’s nice.”
“Eh, I don’t feel no way about it,” Moore said with a smirk. “They just there.”
Turns out, McKinney took those comments personally — and hasn’t forgotten them.
“Obviously, you’ve got the rivalry itself, but there’s a clip somewhere out there where DJ Moore said something about … they were asking him about the Packers getting me and he was like, ‘Who?'” McKinney said on Wednesday. “All that stuff, that’s in my memory bank and I work accordingly to that.
“You know how people get before the season. They don’t really know what’s going to happen during the season and you just start talking too much and you don’t really know what you’re talking about. You’re just talking.”
DJ Moore Responds to Xavier McKinney’s ‘Trash Talk’
McKinney didn’t just unload on Moore over his offseason comments. He also took aim at the 27-year-old Bears wide receiver for what McKinney described as Moore “walking off the field” on rookie quarterback Caleb Williams in Week 9’s loss to Arizona.
“This dude walked out on his QB,” McKinney said, noting that Moore is a team captain. “I’ve been playing football for five years now and I’ve been watching football for longer than that, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen [anything like it].
“You’re supposed to be the guy and you’re walking off the field. You’re walking off the field on a rookie quarterback that you’ve been praising. So, it’s like, that’s a whole other story.”
The controversial moment to which McKinney is referring came in the first quarter of the Bears’ 29-9 loss to the Cardinals. Moore ran his route and, while working his way back to Williams — who had scrambled out of the pocket and was looking for an open receiver — he walked out of bounds in the middle of the play, looking apathetic.
Now, Moore later explained he tweaked his ankle while coming back to Williams and that his “momentum” took him out of bounds. His explanation holds water since the clip of the play shows Moore limping on his ankle after leaving the field. Had Moore remained on the field and then touched the ball, it would have resulted in a penalty.
Even still, Moore isn’t letting McKinney’s comments bother him ahead of game day.
“Trash talk is trash talk,” Moore said on November 14. “We’ll see on Sunday what it all plays out to be.”
New Bears OC Thomas Brown Will Make Debut vs. Packers
Whether Moore or McKinney will get the last laugh won’t be determined until Sunday, but the Bears certainly have quite a bit working against them given the recent turmoil.
For starters, the Bears offense has been dreadful. They have not scored a touchdown since losing on a Hail Mary to the Washington Commanders in Week 8. In the two games since then, Williams has completed just 53.5% of his passes for 337 yards and has been sacked 15 times, including a season-high nine times against New England.
Sunday’s game against the Packers will also be the Bears’ first with interim offensive coordinator Thomas Brown at the helm. The Bears fired offensive coordinator Shane Waldron on Tuesday, ending his tenure in Chicago after just nine games. Now, the offense will look to reset and improve under Brown, but his track record isn’t inspiring.
Brown previously served as the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers during their two-win season in 2023. During that time, the Panthers had the worst passing offense in the league, averaging just 161.2 yards per game with No. 1 overall rookie Bryce Young leading the offense. While the circumstances and talent in Carolina might have hampered Brown’s effectiveness, it is hardly a ringing endorsement for him.
The Bears (4-5) will host the Packers (6-3) at Soldier Field at 1 p.m. Eastern Time on November 17 for their first matchup of the 2024 season.
