Former Missouri WR Luther Burden III scores first NFL touchdown in flea-flicker
By Mark Kern
Published:
Luther Burden III had a great career at Missouri, and he is looking to get off to a fast start in the NFL with the Chicago Bears. He has been a little quiet in his first two games, as he had two catches for two yards entering Sunday.
The Bears had an early 7-3 lead when coach Ben Johnson dialed up a trick play. Running back D’Andre Swift flipped the ball back to Caleb Williams on a flea-flicker, and Williams delivered an absolute strike to Burden for a 65-yard touchdown.
Burden was one of the highest-ranked recruits in the history of Missouri football, and he put together a great career during his time in Columbia. In his three years from 2022-2024, he had 192 catches for 2,263 yards and 21 touchdowns. He had a streak of 34 consecutive games with a catch. In his last two years, the Tigers put together one of the best back-to-back seasons in program history, as they finished with a record of 21-5.
The Bears are extremely high on his potential, which is why they drafted him with the 39th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. He was a little behind in the off-season as he dealt with an injury, but they selected him with the hope that he could form a talented young receiver duo with last year’s first-round pick, Rome Odunze.
