On Tuesday, the Bears announced they signed No. 1 wide receiver DJ Moore to a franchise-record contract extension worth $110 million over four years, with $82.6 million guaranteed, NBC Sports Chicago’s Josh Schrock confirmed.
The catch? His contract doesn’t affect their cap space in 2024.
As it stands, the Bears own roughly $11.5 million in cap space. They represent the 22nd most cap space in the NFL. That’s not the Earth-shattering nine-figure amount of cap space they owned last offseason. But for a team on the brink of contention, it’s a strong number.
The reason Moore’s contract doesn’t affect this season is because he’s still playing through the final two seasons of the three-year extension the Panthers granted him before trading him to the Bears. Moore’s cap hit this season stands at roughly $16 million — the fourth-largest cap hit on the team behind Montez Sweat, Keenan Allen and Tremaine Edmunds.
When Moore’s contract extension goes into effect in 2026, his cap hit will be closer to $27.5 million — the average annual value of his new extension. For now, the Bears can enjoy the luxury of paying non-quarterback players while Caleb Williams plays through the first four years of his cheap, rookie deal.
With Moore still playing under his Panthers contract, the Bears have a little bit of freedom to continue building out their roster should they please. The main gap left in their roster is an edge rusher opposite Montez Sweat.
But GM Ryan Poles told the media he’s comfortable where the roster stands.