The Chicago Bears employ several players who are accustomed to being a top option in the passing game. That was true before the 2025 NFL Draft, with DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, Cole Kmet and even D’Andre Swift recording high target shares.

Then GM Ryan Poles and coach Ben Johnson added two more such players in the first two rounds. They selected tight end Colston Loveland at No. 10 and wide receiver Luther Burden at No. 39.

Quarterback Caleb Williams is surrounded by talent who can get open and produce after the catch, with a strong offensive line to protect him.

That creates a first-world problem for Johnson and Williams. There’s lots of quality and only one ball. They have to figure out how to keep all that talent happy and fed.

Offensive coordinator Declan Doyle understands the issue, but he believes that’s a problem for the future.

“There’s only one ball,” Doyle said in a Saturday press conference. “That’s part of the deal. We have to make sure that we’re taking all that into account in the game-plan process. We’re very early in that. We don’t have to deal with those problems quite yet, but those are really good problems to have as an offense.”

Doyle had a chance to see Burden work well in rookie minicamp. Loveland is rehabbing from shoulder surgery, but Doyle, a former tight ends coach, has seen his explosiveness on tape.

The coaching staff is getting to know incumbent members of the roster, too, having only entered the offseason program’s second phase.

“As we get into OTAs, that’s where we’re going to really explore what these guys can do,” Doyle said. “We’ll see where we see the direction of this offense going and start to ask them to be a little bit outside of their comfort zone, maybe with things that they haven’t done before, and really start to shape that and what that looks like.”

Johnson has said he wants to create competition in each position group, believing it extracts the best from his roster. These receivers must earn their target share with hard work plus chemistry and trust built with Williams.

Johnson’s scheme also will have a say in it. Play design can feature individuals, as can formations and route combinations. Plenty of skill players had significant production when Johnson ran the Detroit Lions’ offense, so it’s fair to expect the same thing in Chicago.

While the offense naturally will spread the ball around, Johnson also is curious to see how these skill players react when they aren’t targeted.  

“What I’m going to be curious to see is what guys look like when the ball’s not in their hands on offense,” Johnson said after the draft. “Yeah, you’re right, we have a lot of weapons. So, how are you going to run your route when you might not be No. 1 in the progression? How are you going to block for your teammate when he has the ball? Because when you do those things right, then as a coaching staff, we’re going to want to get you the ball a little bit more. So, it all ties together. It all goes hand in hand, and that’s the beauty behind it.”