Did D.J. Moore give up on Bears final interception in NFL Playoffs loss to Rams?

The Chicago Bears were closing in on field goal range in overtime of the Divisional Round of the 2026 NFL Playoffs when Caleb Williams tried to take a shot down field. On 2nd-and-8 from the Los Angeles 48-yard-line, Williams threw the ball about 25 yards down the right sideline looking for D.J. Moore. Rams cornerback Kamren Curl jumped the route and intercepted the pass, and it would be the last Bears offensive play of the season.

The Rams marched down the field and kicked a 42-yard field goal to win the game, 20-17, in overtime. It ends a magical season for the Bears that saw them pull out so many miracle wins on their final possession. The Rams now go on to face the Seattle Seahawks on the road in the NFC Championship Game next week.

Williams made one of the greatest throws in recent NFL history to send the game to overtime when he somehow found Cole Kmet in the back of the end zone after retreating to midfield with 18 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The Bears didn’t need another miracle after they got a stop on the first LA possession of overtime, they just needed a solid drive and a good kick. Instead, Williams threw his third interception of the game, and the Rams took control from there.

The discussion in Chicago after the game centered on Moore’s effort on Williams’ final pick. Could Moore have prevented the interception by running hard through the end of the play? Does it look like he quit on the play? Judge for yourself.

Moore has had a reputation for quitting on routes since last season. When he’s not the primary read or doesn’t think he has a chance to catch the ball, he has a tendency to pull up and start jogging. It does look like that happened here, but I also can’t fully blame him for the play. Williams took a rare chance putting that ball up for grabs. It’s also a questionable play call because Chicago didn’t have to get so aggressive in that situation.

Moore should have kept running, and maybe the pass doesn’t get intercepted if he does. That’s also not the sole reason the Bears lost the game. Chicago’s offense had so many chances to put the game away and couldn’t do it.

Moore caught Williams’ first touchdown pass of the night, and ended the game with five catches for 52 yards and the one score. Moore also caught the game-winning touchdown against the Packers in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs, and hauled in Williams’ walk-off laser to stun the Packers in Week 16.

Still, when there’s questionable effort with the game on the line, a lot of people are going to be talking about it. Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens seemed to think the interception was Moore’s fault, not Williams’.

Bears fans were not happy with Moore:

Williams said it was a miscommunication between him and Moore and didn’t blame his effort level.

I tend to think the ball was just a little too far out in front of Moore even if he did give max effort on the final interception. With the season on the line, though, why not run out the play?

The Bears should go into the offseason with their head held high. They had a great year, highlighted by Williams’ many miracles. Chicago will be one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl next season, but it really needs to improve its pass rush.

What a tough way to lose. The Bears won’t forget any of it all through the spring and summer.