Kalif Raymond has spent much of his NFL career making an impact as a return specialist and complementary receiver. On Monday Night Football against the Philadelphia Eagles, the veteran became one of the biggest weapons in the Chicago Bears’ offense.
Raymond caught six passes for 90 yards and a 41-yard touchdown as Chicago beat Philadelphia 27-7 on September 28, 2026. His performance helped 38-year-old quarterback Case Keenum win his first NFL start since 2023 and moved the Bears to 2-1. [The Guardian]
The performance also continued an unexpectedly productive start to Raymond’s first season in Chicago after five years with the Detroit Lions.
Who Is Kalif Raymond?
Kalif Raymond is a 32-year-old wide receiver and return specialist for the Chicago Bears. He is listed at 5-foot-9 and 160 pounds and played college football at Holy Cross. [Bears]
Raymond entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Denver Broncos in 2016 and spent years bouncing between teams and practice squads before establishing himself with the Detroit Lions. [Lions]
His NFL stops have included:
- Denver Broncos
- New York Jets
- New York Giants
- Tennessee Titans
- Detroit Lions
- Chicago Bears
Raymond developed into one of the NFL’s better punt returners in Detroit while also becoming a useful part of the Lions’ passing offense. He earned second-team All-Pro honors as a punt returner in 2022 and 2024. [Bears]
What Did Kalif Raymond Do Against The Eagles?
Raymond produced his biggest game as a Bear on the national stage.
He finished with six receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown, leading Chicago in receiving yards during its 27-7 victory over Philadelphia. [The Guardian]
The performance was particularly important because Chicago was playing without starting quarterback Caleb Williams, who was sidelined by a hamstring injury. Keenum started in his place and completed 24 of 34 passes for 247 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for a score. [Reuters]
Raymond accounted for more than one-third of Keenum’s passing yards.
What Happened On Kalif Raymond’s 41-Yard Touchdown?
Raymond delivered the biggest offensive play of the second half.
Keenum found Raymond wide open downfield, and the veteran receiver used his speed to outrun Philadelphia’s defense for a 41-yard touchdown. [Bears]
The touchdown was particularly notable because Raymond has spent much of his career being valued for exactly that trait: speed.
Despite his smaller frame, Raymond can threaten defenses vertically and create significant yards after the catch when he gets into open space.
Why Was Raymond So Effective Against Philadelphia?
Raymond’s skill set fit what Chicago needed from an offense being operated by a veteran backup quarterback.
He can work underneath, stretch a defense vertically and create yards after the catch. That versatility allowed Keenum to get the ball out efficiently without relying exclusively on difficult downfield throws.
Raymond also entered the game playing well. He had caught 13 of 14 targets for 124 yards over Chicago’s first two games, including eight catches for 84 yards against Carolina in Week 1. [Bears]
His performance against Philadelphia therefore was not completely out of nowhere. It was the biggest game yet in what had already become a larger offensive role than he frequently held in Detroit.
Why Did The Bears Sign Kalif Raymond?
Raymond signed a one-year contract with Chicago on March 12, 2026 after spending five seasons with Detroit. [Bears]
The move reunited him with Bears coach Ben Johnson.
Johnson had been Detroit’s offensive coordinator from 2022 through 2024 and knew Raymond’s capabilities from their years together with the Lions. Bears receivers coach and assistant head coach Antwaan Randle El also worked with Raymond in Detroit. [Bears]
Johnson was a major advocate for the signing.
At the NFL owners meetings, Johnson said he had “stood on the table” for Chicago to bring Raymond in. Johnson explained that his previous experience with Raymond meant the Bears knew exactly what kind of player and person they were acquiring. [Bears]
What Did Ben Johnson See In Raymond?
Speed and versatility were major factors.
Johnson has specifically praised Raymond’s ability to threaten defensive backs vertically. Raymond’s speed forces defenders to respect the possibility that he can run past them, which can also create opportunities on shorter routes. [Yahoo Sports]
That quality was evident against Philadelphia when Raymond turned the Keenum completion into a 41-yard touchdown.
General manager Ryan Poles also identified getting faster and more explosive as a priority during Chicago’s 2026 offseason. Raymond fit both characteristics. [Bears]
Why Did Raymond Leave The Lions?
Raymond reached free agency following the 2025 season and signed with Chicago, where several of the coaches responsible for helping him establish his career in Detroit were already working.
The Bears had also reshaped their receiving corps. Chicago traded DJ Moore to Buffalo during the offseason, creating an opportunity for Raymond to play a meaningful offensive role in addition to his special-teams responsibilities. [Bears]
Rather than joining Chicago simply as a punt return specialist, Raymond entered an offense whose head coach already understood how to use him.
Was Kalif Raymond Good With The Lions?
Yes. Detroit was where Raymond finally established himself as a consistent NFL player.
Over five seasons with the Lions, Raymond caught 171 passes for 2,185 yards and eight touchdowns. He also averaged 11.3 yards on 132 punt returns and returned three punts for touchdowns. [Bears]
His most productive receiving season came in 2022, when he caught 47 passes for 616 yards.
Raymond had also caught 48 passes for 576 yards and four touchdowns in 2021 and recorded 489 receiving yards in 2023. [Bears]
Those numbers demonstrate why describing Raymond solely as a return specialist understates his value. He has repeatedly been capable of contributing as a receiver when given opportunities.
How Good Is Kalif Raymond As A Punt Returner?
Returning punts has been one of Raymond’s defining NFL skills.
Since entering the league in 2016, Raymond has accumulated 188 punt returns for 1,948 yards and four punt-return touchdowns. The Bears credit him with the most punt returns and punt-return yards in the NFL over that span. [Bears]
He was named a second-team AP All-Pro returner in both 2022 and 2024.
His 413 punt-return yards in 2024 led the NFL even though he appeared in only 12 games. [Bears]
Was Kalif Raymond Drafted?
No.
Raymond went undrafted in the 2016 NFL Draft and signed with Denver as a free agent.
His path to becoming an established NFL player was unusually long. Raymond spent time with the Broncos, Jets and Giants and had multiple practice-squad transactions before eventually earning a larger role with Tennessee and then Detroit. [Bears]
His career has now lasted more than a decade despite beginning without a draft selection.
Where Did Kalif Raymond Go To College?
Raymond played at Holy Cross from 2012 through 2015.
He appeared in 40 games with 23 starts, catching 155 passes for 1,683 yards and 14 touchdowns. Raymond also returned 62 punts for 464 yards and 80 kickoffs for 1,809 yards, including two kickoff-return touchdowns. [Bears]
As a senior in 2015, he earned first-team All-Patriot League honors as both a wide receiver and return specialist.
How Fast Is Kalif Raymond?
Speed has been central to Raymond’s game throughout his career.
He competed in track and field in addition to football, and his acceleration has allowed him to overcome the size disadvantage that contributed to him entering the NFL as an undrafted prospect.
Johnson has emphasized that Raymond’s vertical speed forces defensive backs to retreat at the snap because they must respect his ability to get behind them. [Yahoo Sports]
The 41-yard touchdown against Philadelphia demonstrated exactly why that speed remains valuable even at age 32.
Is The Eagles Game Really A Breakout For Raymond?
It was a breakout game for Raymond as a Bear, rather than the first major performance of his NFL career.
Raymond is an established veteran who previously produced a 616-yard receiving season and earned two All-Pro honors as a return specialist.
What changed against Philadelphia was his visibility and role.
Playing on Monday Night Football, Raymond led Chicago with 90 receiving yards and scored on a 41-yard play during a convincing victory over the Eagles. [The Guardian]
For viewers who primarily knew Raymond as Detroit’s punt returner — or did not know him at all — the game showcased that he can still be an important offensive weapon.
How Has Kalif Raymond Started The 2026 Season?
Raymond’s first three games indicate that his role in Chicago is considerably more substantial than simply returning punts.
He opened the season with eight receptions for 84 yards against Carolina and followed that with five catches for 40 yards against Minnesota. [Bears]
He then added six receptions for 90 yards and his first Bears touchdown against Philadelphia.
That gives Raymond 19 catches for 214 yards and one touchdown through three games.
For comparison, Raymond finished the entire 2025 season in Detroit with 24 receptions for 289 yards and one touchdown. [Bears]
Through only three games with Chicago, he is already approaching those 2025 receiving totals.
What Does Raymond’s Breakout Mean For The Bears?
Raymond gives Chicago another proven receiving option in an offense that entered the season with uncertainty behind its primary weapons.
His performance is particularly useful while Williams is unavailable. Keenum did not need Raymond to function exclusively as a deep threat against Philadelphia; he was able to repeatedly get him involved and then capitalize when the Eagles allowed Raymond room for the 41-yard touchdown.
Raymond’s existing familiarity with Johnson’s offense also matters. Unlike a newly acquired veteran who must learn an unfamiliar system, Raymond spent multiple seasons working within Johnson’s Detroit offense.
The first three weeks suggest Chicago may have found more than the return specialist it signed in March.
Kalif Raymond At A Glance
- Team: Chicago Bears
- Position: Wide receiver/return specialist
- Number: 14
- Age: 32
- Height: 5-foot-9
- College: Holy Cross
- Draft status: Undrafted in 2016
- First NFL team: Denver Broncos
- Previous team: Detroit Lions
- Joined Bears: March 2026
- Contract: One year
- All-Pro honors: Second-team punt returner in 2022 and 2024
- 2026 through three games: 19 receptions, 214 yards, 1 touchdown
- Against Eagles: 6 receptions, 90 yards, 1 touchdown
- Longest Eagles reception: 41-yard touchdown
Why Does Kalif Raymond’s Eagles Performance Matter?
Raymond’s game against Philadelphia was not the emergence of an unknown rookie. It was a veteran finally receiving national attention for skills that coaches who worked with him in Detroit already understood.
Johnson specifically pushed for the Bears to sign Raymond because he knew what the receiver could provide. Three games into the season, that familiarity appears to be paying off. [Bears]
Raymond has gone from an undrafted player who bounced between multiple practice squads to a two-time All-Pro return specialist and, now, a significant part of Chicago’s passing offense.
Against the Eagles, his six-catch, 90-yard performance and 41-yard touchdown provided the clearest example yet of why the Bears believed the 32-year-old could contribute much more than special teams.
