The Chicago Bears are hoping that new first-year head coach Ben Johnson can help elevate their team from the cellar of the NFC North and back into NFL Playoff contention. But while Johnson’s arrival from the Detroit Lions has brought in a new glimmer of hope to the proud Bears franchise, the fact of the matter is that they laid the foundation for this new era of Chicago football before he even got here.
Of course, the Bears have their franchise quarterback, Caleb Williams, who they took with the first overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. As a rookie, Williams had one of the best seasons ever for a Chicago quarterback, completing 62.5% of his passes for 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns, just six interceptions, and an 87.8 passer rating.
Additionally, the Bears also took wide receiver Rome Odunze with the ninth overall pick in last year’s draft, and he is looking to build off of a strong rookie campaign in order to have a breakout season in 2025.
Chicago Bears Wide Receiver Rome Odunze Detailed What He Learned as a Rookie
As a rookie, Odunze had 54 receptions for 734 yards and three touchdowns. He ranked third on the team in receptions behind DJ Moore and Keenan Allen, and third in receiving yards behind those two same players.
Now, Allen is a free agent who remains unsigned, but is clearly not returning to Chicago. This means, of course, that Odunze is going to have an even bigger role in the offense going forward, which is something that he feels ready for.
While speaking with Jayna Bardahl of The Athletic, Odunze discussed how much he learned as a rookie and how those lessons will help him be a better player in 2025:
“There’s a lot of nitpicking and grabbing in this league that isn’t always shown,” Odunze said. “I feel like I needed to build upper-body mass to be able to combat some of those things.
“It’s a different game than college football. There are different windows, different ways to get open, and there’s a different pace that you have to get adapted to,” Odunze said. “Having a full season under my belt, I feel like I’m aware of those things.
“I can now play the game freely in a way that I know where I need to be when I need to be there.”
Odunze just turned 23 years old, which means he has a long and prosperous career ahead of him if he can stay healthy. And if he can keep on applying these lessons, with the coaching of Ben Johnson and Williams’ own improvements, he could be one of the best Bears wide receivers in recent memory.
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