LutherBurden III

News: 7 days agoBurden (hamstring) is taking part in team drills at Tuesday's practice, Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic reports.

Spin: Burden missed OTAs, minicamp, and the first four days of training camp due to a hamstring injury sustained during rookie minicamp back in May, but head coach Ben Johnson said the 39th overall pick in the 2025 Draft is ready to be eased into team drills "slowly but surely," per Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com. Johnson said the wideout is "a little behind right now," but it at least appears that Burden's health is no longer impeding his development. He still has plenty of time to display his playmaking abilities in training camp and the preseason, and to potentially push Olamide Zaccheaus for the No. 3 receiver role behind DJ Moore and Rome Odunze.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Burden was selected by Chicago in the second round of April's draft. He is a bit undersized (his 8.5-inch hands tied for smallest in this class), but he's very young (21) and was highly relied upon and productive during three seasons at Missouri. He's fast with terrific playmaking ability and can align all over the formation. Burden is set to replace Keenan Allen as Chicago's slot man, but there are a lot of mouths to feed in an offense that also includes DJ Moore, Rome Odunze and Colston Loveland. Consistent Year 1 fantasy production is unlikely, so Burden is only worth a late flier.