Getty Wide receiver Rome Odunze of the Washington Huskies talks with wide receiver Deebo Samuel of the San Francisco 49ers.
The Chicago Bears are already loaded at the wide receiver position, but a trio of elite pass-catchers is hardly too much of a good thing in the contemporary NFL.
Matt Bowen of ESPN on Thursday, April 4 dubbed Chicago his “favorite team fit” for Washington Huskies wideout Rome Odunze, who very well could remain available to the Bears with the 9th pick in the first round of this year’s NFL draft.
Let’s add a boundary target for quarterback Caleb Williams (USC), who is expected to go No. 1 overall to the Bears. With blazing 4.45 40 speed and the leaping ability to play above the rim, Odunze has the physical profile to produce as the X receiver in Shane Waldron’s Chicago offense.
Odunze was credited with 24 contested catches in 2023, which tied for the most in the FBS. 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.
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.
Rome Odunze, Another Elite WR Could Feasibly Fall to Bears at No. 9 Pick
GettyFormer Washington Huskies wide receiver Rome Odunze.
Odunze added 13 TDs and 92 catches at an average of 17.8 yards per clip, as he helped Washington all the way to the National Championship Game. Procuring such an explosive talent at No. 9 overall wouldn’t be a possibility in most drafts, but the top-heavy nature of the QB and receiver positions in 2024 could open up a pathway for Chicago to land the Washington wideout.
If a team like the Minnesota Vikings or the Denver Broncos move into the top five for a quarterback, there is a good chance the organization they swap with is one that will select a receiver should the current draft order remain static. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. predicted in his latest mock that the top three picks later this month will be QBs and the next three selections will be pass-catchers.
However, if a QB-needy squad trades up with the Arizona Cardinals at No. 4 or the Los Angeles Chargers at No. 5 — both of which are plausible scenarios — then the wideout math changes.
Kiper has the Tennessee Titans selecting left tackle Joe Alt at No. 7 and the Atlanta Falcons drafting edge rusher Dallas Turner at No. 8, which would leave a receiver available to Chicago at No. 9. Odunze is the most likely to be that player, given how NFL circles view Marvin Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers. However, if either one dropped to the Bears with the 9th pick, that would be as good of a result — if not better — than Odunze falling to that spot.
Drafting Rome Odunze Would Give Bears Arguably Best Trio of WRs in NFL
GettyChicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore.
The combination Odunze’s talent and the Bears’ receiver room as it already exists would afford Williams, or whoever plays quarterback in Chicago next season, perhaps the best trio of wideouts in the NFL.
Allen is a six-time Pro Bowler, earning the honor in six of the past seven seasons, including in 2023. Despite missing four games with injury, Allen produced 108 receptions for 1,243 yards and 7 TDs in Los Angeles last season.
Meanwhile, Moore was probably the biggest Pro Bowl snub at the position in the entire league. In his first season with Chicago, he tallied 96 catches for 1,364 yards and 8 TDs, all of which were career-highs according to Pro Football Reference.