Bears player DJ Moore regrets showing emotions in loss to Texans

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – DJ Moore wasn't aware of how his body language was perceived during the Chicago Bears' 19-13 loss in Houston until he saw video clips of himself circulating on social media.

When the veteran wide receiver saw himself caught on cameras on “Sunday Night Football,” he did a “self-evaluation” and realized his frustration was directed neither at the Bears’ passing game nor at anyone in particular.

“I shouldn't have shown that much,” Moore said. “But that's part of the game. Like I said, we were one play away from changing the game. And we just couldn't score, nobody on offense could grab that one play or start that one play to get us on track and move forward. That's football. Everyone has their ups and downs and frustrations.”

With Houston trailing by nine points and 3:01 to play, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams threw a back-shoulder pass to Moore on third-and-4 from the Texans' 36-yard line. After the throw fell incomplete, Moore briefly lay on his back before removing his helmet and walking to the Bears sideline.

The cameras also showed Moore appearing sullen while sitting on the bench, which the wide receiver said was a misrepresentation of his body language.

“…every chance I got, the camera caught that angle,” Moore said. “I'm usually sitting on the bench like that anyway, so I don't know what that's about.”

Moore was targeted 10 times, the most on the team, and caught six passes for 53 yards. When he recounted his throw that ended the Bears' second-to-last drive of the game, Williams took responsibility for missing the throw.

“Try to give [Moore] the ball, and if I had thrown it a little less far and given him a little more time, he would have made the play,” Williams said. “And that's why we're going to run into that here soon and make those plays.”

Moore was the Bears' leading pass receiver (1,364 yards) in his first season in Chicago in 2023 and received a four-year, $110 million contract extension in August. While others may frustrate him over the Bears' offensive weaknesses (2.97 yards per game, the franchise's lowest two-week mark in the Super Bowl era), Moore doesn't want to put pressure on Williams with his frustration.

“You want to keep things stable because then you don't want him to get frustrated and just go out and try to make a play, which he wasn't really trying to do. [out of frustration]he was just himself,” Moore said. “That's all you can ask of him.”