Every NFL team’s breakout star for this season

Breakout NFL candidates for 2023: Chicago Bears – Darnell Mooney

The Chicago Bears offense made big changes in the past 12 months. Since Justin Fields took over as starting quarterback full-time, he found a niche as one of the best rushing quarterbacks in the league. He was a big play machine, rushing for more than 20 yards on ten different plays throughout the season. Only Nick Chubb did that more times. Four of those rushes went for more than 40 yards, with nobody beating that numbers on the season, running back or quarterback.

They added Chase Claypool during last season and used the number-one overall pick to get them a package that includes DJ Moore. This new receiving core is going to help Fields be a better passer, something he struggled with since it was hard to get anyone open. However, one fact that’s been overlooked is how good Darnell Mooney looked in his limited time with Fields.

Mooney and Fields were able to hit on big plays for a few games despite taking about a month to find the chemistry. They never took that next step, and then Mooney suffered a broken ankle toward the end of the season, finishing with under 500 yards. This was a player that had 1,000 yards the season before last.

Now, Mooney looks to get back to his big-play ways, now with a better Fields under center. Word on the street is Fields worked on making his deep ball even better, and Mooney will pay dividends on that work. With more pieces in the wide receiver room, Mooney will be open deep much more often.