Luther Burden III Injury Updates, Latest on Bears WR Ahead of NFL Season, Fantasy Football Drafts

Luther Burden III could be poised for a major season for the Chicago Bears and fantasy football managers alike, but he first must get through a setback in training camp.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Sunday the wide receiver suffered a groin injury "and should miss a little bit of time."

While Rapoport called the injury "one to keep an eye on," that he provided a timeline of "a little bit of time" suggests Burden avoided a serious setback that will cost him significant time during the regular season.

Injuries have already been a major concern for the Bears even before the start of preseason games.

Headline offseason addition Coby Bryant was lost for weeks to a knee injury, starting defensive back Kyler Gordon still hasn't participated in practice, and secondary depth pieces such as Elijah Hicks, Cam Lewis, Gervarrius Owens and Dallis Flowers have also suffered setbacks.

What's more, Braxton Jones and defensive lineman Montez Sweat also suffered injuries during practice.

Losing Burden for significant time would be yet another blow for a team already dealing with so many injuries. After Chicago traded DJ Moore to the Buffalo Bills this offseason, the Missouri product is expected to be one of the top two wide receivers along with Rome Odunze.

The Bears selected Burden with a second-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft, and he was an important playmaker in his rookie season with 47 catches for 652 yards and two touchdowns. He was a deep threat for quarterback Caleb Williams and took advantage of openings when opposing secondaries focused too much attention on Moore and Odunze.

And it would be anything but a surprise if Burden takes a second-year leap, which is why he is on the radar of plenty of fantasy football managers ahead of their drafts.

While Chicago can turn toward the tight ends in Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet to help anchor the aerial attack, it still needs Burden healthy and available if it is going to reach its potential after reaching the NFC Divisional Round last season.

Odunze is solid, but there are question marks after him with Kalif Raymond, Jahdae Walker and Zavion Thomas as the secondary options out wide.

The offense is much more dangerous with Burden healthy and on the field.