Getty Wide receiver Rome Odunze of the Washington Huskies.
The Chicago Bears own the first and ninth picks in the NFL draft, and putting together an elite QB-WR duo that can dominate the league for a decade or more is far from out of the question.
Star QB prospect Caleb Williams of USC is the favorite to land in Chicago at No. 1 overall. The more intriguing question is who can the Bears land at No. 9? There is a reasonable chance that wide receiver Rome Odunze of the Washington Huskies is among the answers, which is an unquestionably exciting prospect, particularly in the context of teaming him up with Williams.
The two players competed against each other in the now defunct Pac 12 conference, and Odunze spoke recently to the prospect of working as teammates at the next level.
“I got to see Caleb first hand,” Odunze said of Williams at the NFL Combine, per Courtney Cronin of ESPN. “I got to see his talents and abilities. So definitely, I know he’s a student of the game and someone who brings a lot of passion and a lot of desire to the game. So, of course, to be paired up with him would be something special.”
Rome Odunze Has Spoken Highly of Bears Organization, City of Chicago in Their Own Rights
GettyFormer Washington Huskies wide receiver Rome Odunze.
Odunze’s combine comments on Williams — equipped with the knowledge that the Bears own the No. 1 overall pick and the USC quarterback is the favorite to end up the team’s selection there — wasn’t the first time the star wideout has spoken relative to the organization or the city of Chicago.
NBC Sports Chicago conducted an interview with Odunze in early February ahead of the Super Bowl, during which he spoke positively about the franchise and its market.
I’ve seen great things. I was a big fan of Devin Hester growing up. That was my favorite player.
Chicago is an amazing city, and I feel like in recent years they haven’t had the success that they wanted. And I feel like I could revive that, provide another asset to that offense to help propel them to another height. … I think they’ve got some weapons. But I think they could add me, and [I could] be another asset for them.
Rome Odunze Excited About Potentially Playing Alongside Bears Wide Receiver DJ Moore
GettyWide receiver DJ Moore of the Chicago Bears.
One of those assets is DJ Moore, who had a career year in 2023 with 96 catches for 1,364 receiving yards and 8 TDs.
“He’s a dog,” Odunze told NBC Sports Chicago. “I remember watching — I mean he just doesn’t go down. His balance to maintain it through catches and stay on his feet and get those extra yards, it’s one of the highlights of his game. He’s smaller, but he has the speed, the physicality of a bigger receiver. He’s exciting to watch.”
Matt Bowen of ESPN named Chicago his “favorite team fit” for Odunze last week, largely because of the potential pairings with Moore in the receiver room and Williams as the quarterback.
“Odunze was credited with 24 contested catches in 2023, which tied for the most in the FBS,” Bowen wrote. “He could be the vertical one-on-one target for Williams to the backside of 3×1 sets (three pass-catchers on one side of the formation, one on the other), with the ability to work the intermediate voids and isolate inside the low red zone,” Bowen wrote. “Adding Odunze, who led the nation with 1,640 receiving yards, would complement the skills sets of DJ Moore and Keenan Allen, giving Williams three viable targets in Year 1.”
There is no guarantee that Odunze will fall to Chicago at the No. 9 pick, though there are several feasible paths to that outcome. The Bears could also package assets to move up a few spots to ensure they land Odunze, or a wideout of similar talent.