Everything is about to change for the Chicago Bears. There’s only so much offseason hype one team can get. Ultimately, they have to prove it on the gridiron. While Week 1 is still a ways away, new head coach Ben Johnson will have an opportunity to get his first look at the 2025 Bears when the offseason program begins.
Johnson will undoubtedly be evaluating every player at every position. The Bears certainly have talent, but this is still a team coming off of a 5-12 campaign. It’ll be difficult for Chicago to become world beaters overnight, but Johnson at least wants to distinguish which players will help set the foundation for success.
One of those players is expected to be wide receiver Rome Odunze. After taking quarterback Caleb Williams at No. 1, the Bears got him another receiver to work with in Odunze at No. 9 in 2024. However, after a rocky rookie season, Alex Kay of Bleacher Report thinks the wide receiver is one of the players with the most to prove entering the offseason program.
“Odunze is more of a wild card, though, especially after his much-anticipated first season ended with him catching only 54 balls on 101 targets for 734 yards and three touchdowns,” Kay wrote. “Although he was the No. 9 overall pick and the third wideout off the board in the 2024 draft, he finished sixth in receiving yardage and seventh in receptions among first-year players.”
“A positional logjam didn’t help his cause. He was well behind No. 1 option D.J. Moore in the pecking order and had to contend with veteran Keenan Allen for looks. With Allen out of the picture, Odunze should be the clear-cut No. 2 option in Johnson’s offense.”
“If Odunze can hit the ground running and make a good early impression on Johnson, he will be poised for a breakout campaign,” Kay concluded. “Anything less and he could be in line for another disappointing season in 2025.”
Rome Odunze’s Chicago Bears debut
Chicago Bears wide receiver gets firm warning before offseason program 2Chicago Bears Rome Odunze makes a catch – Credit: Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Much like Williams, Odunze came to Chicago with plenty of hype. Still, while he didn’t fall flat on his face, the wide receiver’s rookie season didn’t live up to expectations.
Appearing in all 17 games – starting 12 – Odunze caught 54 passes for 734 yards and three touchdowns. He ranked third on the team in receptions and yardage and fourth in receiving touchdowns. However, Odunze broke 100 receiving yards just twice as a rookie. Two of his receiving touchdowns came in the same game.
Part of that is on Odunze. As Johnson steps into his lead role, he’ll be looking for Odunze to take a massive stride forward. But at the same time, the wide receiver wasn’t put in a position to succeed. Chicago changed their play caller more than once and had a paper thin offensive line in front of Williams. Much like the quarterback, the wide receiver never found his footing.
The Bears have done everything in their power to bolster their offense. That should mean a boost for Odunze as well. But ultimately, he’ll need to show through the offseason program and into the regular season why Chicago invested such a high draft pick in him.
Reasons for Odunze optimism
Chicago Bears wide receiver gets firm warning before offseason program 3Chicago Bears Rome Odunze battles for yardage – Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
For starters, the Bears finished the 2024 season ranked 31st in passing, averaging 181.5 yards per game. Johnson helped lead the Detroit Lions to a second-place finish, averaging 263.2 YPG. While fans shouldn’t expect that kind of leap in year one, literally any form of passing improvement would be an immediate boon for Odunze.
There hasn’t been much buzz about a potential Keenan Allen return. Assuming he leaves the franchise, there are 70 receptions, 744 yards and seven touchdowns up for grabs. Maybe the reason the Bears haven’t been so aggressive in bringing Allen back is due to their hopes of a Odunze breakout.
Behind him on the depth chart are players that shouldn’t cut into Odunze’s role much. Olamide Zaccheaus has been a strong WR3, but he isn’t on the same level as Allen. Next to DJ Moore, Odunze should be given the keys to truly lead Chicago’s wide receiver room.
It wouldn’t be surprising if the Bears added more wide receiver help in the draft. They have four picks inside the top 75 to find a weapon. But even if they do, Chicago has big plans for Odunze. It’s now up to him to prove he can handle the hefty load.
