NEWSLETTER
The Chicago Bears made one heck of an investment (beating out a pair of NFC North rivals in the process) to bring Trey Burton into the fold. And while we won’t know anything about the return on investment until games of consequence are played, Burton showed a glimpse of what the Bears might have been buying into.
Burton was named to Pro Football Focus’ Team of the Week after Saturday’s performance against the Denver Broncos. Chicago’s newest tight end caught four of five passes for 45 yards and hauled in the first preseason touchdown for the team’s first-unit offense. That’s a marked improvement for a group that mustered no points in two offensive drives during its Preseason Week 1 exhibition against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Signing Allen Robinson garnered a ton of headlines (and rightfully so). Adding Taylor Gabriel brings an element of speed and the potential to create splashy plays in multiple facets of the game. But snatching Burton off the free agent market and placing him in the middle of this offense could ultimately be a game-changer. Burton will be a focal point of Matt Nagy’s offense, much like the tight ends in offenses run by Andy Reid in Kansas City and Doug Pederson in Philadelphia. Oh, and it’s not just about catching passes or racking up yards after the catch.
As NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky points out, the Bears used Burton to help show Mitch Trubisky pre-snap information as he reads the defense:
I loved the @TreyBurton8 signing back in March and I ❤️ ❤️ seeing him used the right way by the @ChicagoBears and giving @Mtrubisky10 info before the snap so the shredding can commence. This is all-season for this offense. @670TheScore @Bernstein_McK @BradBiggs @kfishbain pic.twitter.com/6t4r2rXDZG
— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) August 21, 2018
Simple things such as using tight end motion to provide signs of what the defense is up to appears to be small, but will actually help in Trubisky’s growth (as well as that of the offense as a whole).
Using Travis Kelce as a vehicle to discuss Burton’s value to the Bears is over-simplistic. But let’s talk about Burton’s role as the “U” tight end with a bit of a bigger scope.
In this offense, the “U” tight end is someone who can stretch the field vertically, work the middle of the field and gain tough yards, provide a security blanket in the flat, and even chip in with a block here and there. At face value, this tight end can provide a mismatch against teams who spend a majority of the time in nickel and dime packages by pitting him against cornerbacks and safeties (where the tight end can use size to his advantage as a pass-catcher and run-blocker) or linebackers (where speed can be more of a factor in gaining an edge).
Burton will wear a lot of hats now that he is a TE1 in Chicago. And to be clear, Burton doesn’t have to be Kelce to be successful. He just needs to show an ability to handle the responsibilities given to him. And in turn, that is going to help the Bears’ offense maximize its potential. If he can do that, he’ll go a long way toward earning his multi-million dollar pay day.
