Brandon Beane finally got far enough down the road to pick up the can. The question now is whether his Buffalo Bills are actually on the road to Super Bowl 61 given WR DJ Moore’s image was miraculously plastered on said can.
If nothing else, Thursday’s news that the Bills had agreed to acquire Moore from the Chicago Bears, essentially for a second-rounder, solved a major headache for Beane − TBD if he’s cured or will be reaching for more Tylenol − while creating options heading into the NFL free agency market and, ultimately, the 2026 draft.
“At the end of the day, that is on me, all that stuff is on me,” Beane told local reporters in February about the Bills’ ongoing inability to find high-end receiver production and deep-strike capability for 2024 league MVP Josh Allen opposite slot machine Khalil Shakir and TEs Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox.
A year ago, Beane’s frustration was especially apparent during a local radio interview, when he wondered why fans and media members were ‘bitching’ about the team’s wideout challenges.
‘Our job is to score points and win games,’ Beane added.
‘It’s not fantasy football to trot out the best receivers. You got Josh Allen. First thing you got to do is protect him. You can’t have everything. You can’t have Pro Bowl wide receivers and have a Pro Bowl offensive line and an All-Pro quarterback and three great running backs. You’ve got to pick.
‘So, that’s where I’m like, I don’t understand this narrative.’
Maybe Moore can put it to bed after Keon Coleman, Josh Palmer, Elijah Moore, Curtis Samuel, Mack Hollins, Amari Cooper and others couldn’t in the two years since Stefon Diggs’ departure. All were Band-Aid-adjacent alternatives. And no Bills fan will forget that the team was futilely (as it turned out) relying on 32-year-old journeyman Brandin Cooks, a late-season pickup in 2025, to haul in Allen’s final pass of the devastating divisional-round playoff loss at Denver that ultimately cost longtime coach Sean McDermott his job.
Regardless, this transaction should have significant ramifications for the Bills, Bears, Moore and the early part of the draft in general.
Why didn’t Buffalo just draft a receiver?
Beane’s been on the lookout. Coleman, the 33rd overall pick two years ago, has infamously not worked out − just ask Bills owner Terry Pegula.
But Moore’s a proven commodity, one who’s averaged better than 1,000 receiving yards per season over his eight-year NFL career. He’s not exactly Ja’Marr Chase − who is? − but Moore does resemble a running back once the ball is in his hands. And while he might not run routes as crisp as Shakir’s, Moore can also get open deep − look no further than his pair of game-winning TD catches against the Green Bay Packers last season.
Bottom line? He could be the perfect complement for this offense. He’s also ready to go for a squad Pegula expects Beane and rookie head coach Joe Brady to navigate to a Lombardi Trophy sooner than later.
And while the 2026 draft is viewed as rich with receivers, Beane probably wasn’t going to have the chance of taking USC’s Makai Lemon, Washington’s Denzel Boston, Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson or Ohio State’s Carnell Tate (despite Beane’s humorous wishcasting at the combine) with the 26th pick of the first round. And potentially trading up was going to cost him draft capital anyway, so why not just target Moore?
Who will the Bills target in draft now?
TBD of course, especially with free agency yet to unfold − though Buffalo is currently cap-strapped. But with DE Joey Bosa and G David Edwards and C Connor McGovern all unsigned, interior O-line and pass rush help could now be at the top of Beane’s to-do list.
What does the trade mean for DJ Moore?
A fresh start.
He had a career year in 2023 (96 catches for 1,364 yards and 8 TDs). But that’s when Justin Fields was throwing to him in Chicago, and the Bears weren’t very good. Moore seemed to struggle to find a vibe with QB Caleb Williams for much of the past two seasons and was out-produced by rookie TE Colston Loveland in 2025, Year 1 for the Bears under hotshot coach Ben Johnson. Moore, who’s just entering a four-year, $110 million extension, was also a lot more expensive than Loveland and young WRs Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III.
But now Moore will be paired with Allen, one of the league’s most accurate and strongest-armed passers − and one whose legs make it hard for defenses to double-team receivers. They could be a lethal combo.
What does the DJ Moore trade mean for the Bears?
Options.
Odunze and Loveland were first-round picks the past two years and Burden came in Round 2 in 2025. Johnson’s passing attack should be just fine in the hands of that trio − especially given Moore’s 50 receptions and 682 yards last season were career lows.
As important, having one first-round pick and two selections in Round 2 could be key for Johnson and GM Ryan Poles, who are apparently losing C Drew Dalman to retirement and could see most of last season’s starting secondary leave during free agency.
What does the DJ Moore trade mean for the draft?
Maybe not a ton overall, but with the Bills filling a glaring need, they no longer need to overreach for a wideout. I thought players like Notre Dame’s Malachi Fields, Tennessee’s Chris Brazzell II or Louisville’s Chris Bell might be considerations for Beane at No. 26 pending his desperation level. Any of them might still serve as a big-bodied target for Allen, especially in the red zone, but they’d all now be value propositions … if Beane gets one with the 91st pick. Bell in particular − he’s coming off a torn ACL but compares himself to A.J. Brown − could be a steal, if not someone likely to necessarily contribute immediately.
