New Chicago Bears receiver Darnell Mooney, a 5th-round pick out of Tulane, brings ‘big-time speed’ to the offense
Darnell Mooney showed off his speed at the NFL combine when he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.38 seconds, tied for third among wide receivers.
But the Tulane prospect, whom the Bears selected Saturday with the No. 173 pick in the fifth round of the NFL draft, said he wants to show there's more to his game than that.
"I think of myself more as a route runner and having my speed is just a bonus," Mooney said.
It's a bonus the Bears definitely could use for their receiving corps after cutting Taylor Gabriel this offseason, and general manager Ryan Pace coveted it enough that he traded up 23 slots to make sure he got it. Pace dealt the Eagles picks 196, 200 and 233 and got back picks 173 and 227 to get Mooney.
Before Mooney, there had just been a run on six receivers in the fifth round, and perhaps Pace felt his grip slipping on selecting a playmaker from a deep class.
It was one of two trades into the fifth round Pace made. His first was swapping a 2021 fourth-round pick with the Vikings to get spot No. 155 for Tulsa edge rusher Trevis Gipson. After the Bears took Georgia Southern cornerback Kindle Vildor with their original fifth-round pick, Pace went after Mooney. Offensive linemen Arlington Hambright (Colorado) and Lachavious Simmons (Tennessee State) rounded out the Bears' selections in the seventh round.
NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah ranked Mooney the No. 140 prospect overall in 2020 and used 49ers wide receiver Travis Benjamin as a comparison.
"He gets on top of coverage in a hurry," Jeremiah said. "Big-time, big-time speed. … You can play him inside. You can play him outside. Just ultra-twitched up. The reason he's here and available? He's (5-foot-10 and) 176 pounds. He's not the biggest guy. Needs to get a little bit stronger."
Mooney had 151 catches for 2,529 yards and 19 touchdowns over four years at Tulane. His best season was in 2018, when he had 993 receiving yards and eight scores, including touchdown catches of 86 and 79 yards in one game against East Carolina.
Size is indeed the biggest concern, but Mooney said he thinks he played bigger than he is. He doesn't view it as a problem — just another challenge in a career that started when he was underrecruited out of high school.
"Same thing over and over — I've just got to prove myself," he said. "I've been living through heart all my life, so I don't expect it to change. Just know as soon as I get in I'm going to make a lot of noise and there are going to be some things to talk about in the future."
Mooney and the other Bears rookies, including Friday's second-round picks Cole Kmet and Jaylon Johnson, will have to start to get to know their new team from afar until the NFL's coronavirus restrictions are lifted.
Mooney, who has been running four miles a day and working out at a friend's home gym to stay in shape, said he would try to get in touch with other offensive players by phone to start the introductions.
"And then get my playbook as soon as possible just so I know what's going on immediately," Mooney said. "So as we start, I can just get in and start rolling."
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