Rich Hribar said he is actively targeting Rome Odunze in the sixth round of best-ball drafts, projecting the Bears wideout for a 23–24 percent target share. Hribar argued that Chicago’s passing environment “can’t get worse” than last season, so any incremental improvement in quarterback play instantly boosts Odunze’s outlook. He teased data from his upcoming red-zone article that shows Odunze already profiles as a strong touchdown scorer and noted there is no clear challenger (Luther Burden was the only name he even considered) to siphon away high-leverage looks. With a consolidated role, better usage, and proven talent, Hribar is willing to chase that combination of floor and ceiling at current ADP.

Davis Mattek remained willing to draft Rome Odunze at his current mid-fifth-round price, calling him a Tee Higgins-style upside play whose fate rests on the Caleb Williams/Ben Johnson partnership. Mattek conceded Odunze was “probably a little overdrafted” and inefficient as a rookie, yet argued those flaws will be masked if Johnson can fix an offense that averaged a league-worst 10 yards on opening drives last year. He noted Williams was “fine” whenever he avoided sacks, suggesting better play sequencing alone could unlock a 130-target, double-digit-TD season. Mattek is actively building Odunze exposure toward 8 %, preferring him over other volatile second-year receivers because the Bears’ revamped scheme offers tournament-winning ceiling. In his view the risk is justified in Best Ball Mania drafts where securing high-variance, high-upside profiles is paramount.

Pat Kerrane warned drafters to steer clear of Rome Odunze unless the sophomore slips well past the early-fifth round in best-ball leagues. Kerrane highlighted Odunze’s uninspiring rookie efficiency—he equated the former first-rounder to “functionally Michael Wilson” after posting a low yards-per-route-run on non-screen targets despite playing from Week 1. He then cited Ryan Heath’s study showing that, since 2014, only 42 % of eventual WR1s break out in Years 2–3 while 26 % erupt immediately as rookies, making expensive second-year bets historically fragile. With Caleb Williams and new play-caller Ben Johnson still an unproven pairing and DJ Moore plus Keenan Allen likely to siphon targets, Kerrane compared Odunze’s realistic outcome to a Rashod Bateman-type WR4 season that sinks early draft capital. He prefers cheaper pivots such as Jayden Reed and will only click Odunze after a multi-round fall in best ball formats.

Davis Mattek said he is treating Rome Odunze like a Tee Higgins-style boom-or-bust bet rather than a future superstar. Mattek flat-out rejected the Justin Jefferson / CeeDee Lamb comps, noting Rich Hribar’s chart that Odunze ran "hundreds of routes without ever seeing a target" last season—a red flag that the rookie struggles to earn throws when Caleb Williams can’t hold up in the pocket. With so much uncertainty around Ben Johnson’s new scheme and Williams’ sack issues (Mattek cited a 40-percent pressure-to-sack rate), Odunze’s path to paying off a Round-5/6 ADP hinges almost entirely on double-digit touchdowns. Mattek will only click him if the market drifts a full round, preferring more bankable wideouts in the same tier for Best Ball tournaments.

Pat Kerrane urged drafters to pump the brakes on Rome Odunze at his current fifth-round Best Ball cost. Kerrane reminded listeners the rookie logged only 1.27 yards per route run and never topped 75 yards in any 2023 game, then cited Ryan Heath’s study showing that since 2014 just 42 % of top-12 wideouts have broken out in Years 2-3 while 26 % did so as rookies—meaning expensive second-year bets miss more often than people think. He added that Odunze’s ADP bakes in every optimistic assumption (Caleb Williams hits immediately, Ben Johnson’s scheme sails, Odunze is the unquestioned WR1) yet ignores the far more common outcome where a Year-2 wideout simply posts WR40-ish numbers that crater a Best Ball roster. Kerrane still likes Odunze as a high-ceiling swing in high-stakes redraft leagues—where you can replace misses on the waiver wire—but will not click him in Best Ball unless the price falls a full round.

Pat Kerrane spotlighted Rome Odunze as the biggest riser in Bears camp. Multiple beats report Odunze running with the starters while Luther Burden sits in the doghouse, and the rookie is already showing timing-route chemistry with Caleb Williams. Kerrane loves Odunze’s 26 percent college target share and 4.45 wheels at 215 pounds, arguing the former Husky can thrive outside or in the slot. With Ben Johnson preaching a pass-heavy identity and DJ Moore commanding defensive attention, Kerrane projects 85–90 rookie targets and is comfortably drafting Odunze in Rounds 9–10 before the market reacts.

Jagger May urged drafters to prioritize Rome Odunze over Xavier Worthy, calling Odunze a more complete and projectable fantasy asset. May warned that Worthy’s ADP is inflating because of a potential Rashee Rice suspension and recency bias from Worthy’s late-season spike when he was essentially Patrick Mahomes’ only healthy wideout. The 2024 Chiefs, however, just added Jalen Royals and get Hollywood Brown back, giving Andy Reid no reason to funnel targets to the rookie. May expects Worthy to reprise a gadget/deep-threat role rather than ascend to a Tyreek Hill-like alpha. Conversely, Odunze already owns first-round draft capital and proved he can command downfield targets in a crowded college offense. With Keenan Allen gone from Chicago and new OC Ben Johnson expected to modernize the passing game, May sees Odunze soaking up intermediate and vertical looks while DJ Moore absorbs defensive attention. He labeled Odunze a well-rounded target earner who is still priced several rounds below his true ceiling.

Shawn Siegele explained that a slight reach on Rome Odunze at the 6/7 turn makes sense because Luther Burden—his preferred late-round complement—remains dirt cheap in Round 13. Siegele likened the strategy to last year’s successful DJ Moore/Darnell Mooney pairing: lock in the higher-volume alpha early and buy the cheaper explosive teammate later for correlation plus injury insulation. Odunze already owns a 34 percent college dominator rating and won every contested-catch drill at the Senior Bowl, traits Siegele believes translate quickly to NFL red-zone work. By tying Odunze to Burden at a combined WR-33 and WR-55 price, drafters effectively "buy two cracks" at a rookie-year breakout without sacrificing premium draft capital at other positions.

Nick Whalen pegged Rome Odunze as a prime sophomore breakout. The Bears lost 140 targets when Keenan Allen departed, and Odunze already has built-in chemistry with QB Caleb Williams from their college days. Whalen expects Odunze to step directly into a high-volume X-receiver role and believes the target share floor alone makes him a steal at his current mid-round ADP.

Pat Kerrane said Rome Odunze’s fifth-/sixth-round ADP forces you to pay for a near-star outcome even though his rookie efficiency profile was mediocre. Odunze managed only 1.18 yards per route run on 602 rookie routes—behind contemporaries Jalen McMillan (1.22) and Xavier Legette (1.19) and well below second-year breakout archetypes such as Jahan Dotson (1.39) and George Pickens (1.38). Kerrane rattled off a laundry list of similar rookies who were ninth-round picks the next summer—Rashod Bateman 1.26, Nico Collins 1.24, Romeo Doubs 1.36—arguing Odunze is being priced as if the leap is already banked in. Yes, Chicago upgraded everything: Ben Johnson calling plays, a rebuilt offensive line, Caleb Williams, and extra weapons that should take defensive attention off Odunze. Johnson even made Kalif Raymond efficient in Detroit. Still, Kerrane thinks drafters are ignoring how many promising wideouts never graduate from the 1.1–1.3 YPRR range. Odunze has to be “Chris Olave on the Bears offense,” as Kerrane put it, to justify this cost. He remains deeply underweight, comfortable missing the breakout unless the price drops a full round.

Erik Beimfohr said he has just 3% Odunze and is unlikely to add more because there are lower-cost lottery tickets who offer a similar ceiling without Odunze’s hefty draft-capital tax. Odunze now goes side-by-side with Travis Hunter, yet Hunter supplies comparable raw athletic upside and could see two-way usage after being taken second overall. Beimfohr noted the same statistical red flags Kerrane highlighted—1.18 YPRR, 11% first-read rate—but added that Odunze was actually the Bears’ fourth option behind Keenan Allen, DJ Moore, and even second-round TE Colson Loveland in last year’s design. Drafting him now requires “blind faith” that Caleb Williams, Ben Johnson, the offensive line, and a host of pass-catcher depth-chart variables all align. Beimfohr prefers scooping Hunter or other late-fifth/early-sixth rookies like Ladd McConkey as cheaper ways to chase a Year-2 breakout archetype.

Pat Kerrane said he owns only 1% Rome Odunze because the sophomore’s ADP around pick-56 demands too many things go right at once. Odunze’s rookie numbers were rough: 602 routes yet just 1.18 yards per route run, tied with Greg Dortch and below Xavier Legette, while his 11% first-read target rate sat in the MVS/Nick Westbrook-Ikhine tier. Kerrane compared that profile to Rashod Bateman— viable NFL receiver, but rarely a weekly fantasy starter. For Odunze to pay off you need Caleb Williams to jump immediately under new OC Ben Johnson, the rebuilt offensive line to gel, Luther Burden to stay quiet, DJ Moore not to rebound, and Odunze himself to leap from tertiary-level usage to true alpha. That is, as Kerrane put it, an “eight-leg parlay you’re drafting at 56 overall.” His plan is to stay well underweight until the price drops into the late 7th or the underlying metrics show real progression in preseason.

Ian Hartitz dropped Rome Odunze well outside his top-40 receivers, calling the Bears sophomore one of 2025’s most overrated break-out bets. Hartitz noted Odunze averaged only 0.1 more PPR points per game than Day-3 rookie Jalen Coker last season despite seeing a similar target total to Marvin Harrison Jr., who was far more productive. He blamed both Odunze’s own inconsistent positioning and a bad habit of losing contested balls he caught routinely at Washington. The 2025 environment looks tougher, not easier: DJ Moore, Luther Burden, and top-10 tight end Colston Loveland all demand targets in Ben Johnson’s historically run-balanced system. Hartitz fears Chicago will devolve into a true committee where none of the three wideouts crack even 115 targets. He pegged Odunze as a volatile WR4/5 who will pop for six good games but burn lineups the rest of the season, advising drafters to take steadier options like Jacoby Myers or upside swings on rookies instead.

Jim Coventry labeled Rome Odunze a prime year-two breakout at his WR33-35 ADP. Despite last season’s dysfunctional scheme, Odunze managed 734 yards and two 100-yard games while playing third fiddle behind Keenan Allen. He posted 64th-percentile YAC even with an 81st-percentile aDOT—an uncommon efficiency combo that signals top-end ability. With Allen gone, Odunze steps into the No. 2 role opposite DJ Moore in what Coventry expects to be a high-volume passing attack, especially against NFC North shoot-outs. Given his draft capital (top-10 pick) and upgraded environment, Coventry predicts Odunze will ‘dust past’ his current price tag.

Shawn Siegele warned drafters that Rome Odunze’s Round-5 price carries far more downside than the market appreciates. Early-round rookie receivers usually get schemed targets simply because of the draft capital, but Siegele noted that when that manufactured volume fails to translate into production it becomes an even bigger red flag than for later picks. He believes Odunze could quickly be squeezed if Luther Burden commands significant usage – a scenario he thinks is not baked into current projections – while DJ Moore still owns the alpha role. Add in an uncertain Caleb Williams learning curve, two tight ends (Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet) vying for middle-of-the-field looks, and a run-leaning Ben Johnson scheme, and Odunze suddenly needs multiple things to break perfectly just to be startable. Siegele urged fantasy managers in Season-Long and Best-Ball formats to treat Odunze as a volatile swing rather than a core piece and to have a contingency plan if they click his name.

Josh Norris called Rome Odunze the sneakiest 2025 breakout in fantasy, arguing the former top-10 pick will overtake DJ Moore as Chicago’s target leader next season. Odunze’s success rate versus man coverage sits in the 70-plus percentile, and Ben Johnson’s receiver-friendly play-calling plus an upgraded offensive line should goose efficiency after Caleb Williams posted the league’s worst deep-ball numbers in 2024. Odunze was pigeonholed into a vertical role last year (13.8 air-yards per target, second only to Calvin Ridley among high-volume WRs), but Norris believes Johnson will diversify his route tree and feed him schemed looks. At a late-fifth/early-seventh-round price in redraft—and even cheaper in many dynasty ranks—drafters get a future Bears WR1 at a WR3 cost.

Mattek pushed back on Rome Odunze’s sixth-round DraftKings ADP, arguing the rookie wideout is being "propped up by a mystical ethos" rather than proven production. He reminded listeners Odunze was a four-year collegiate player who benefitted from a first-round quarterback at Washington yet still posted merely good-not-great efficiency. With DJ Moore entrenched as Caleb Williams’ first read and Ben Johnson’s scheme expected to spread targets, Mattek sees Odunze needing immediate alpha-level target share to pay off— a tough ask for any rookie. He is passing on Odunze in favor of cheaper Chicago pieces such as Luther Burden or Colston Loveland that provide a lower opportunity cost but still give exposure to a potentially ascending Bears offense.

Nez admitted he has drafted very little Rome Odunze because the fifth-round price already bakes in an upper-percentile outcome while ignoring Chicago’s depth chart logjam. With D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen, Cole Kmet, and D’Andre Swift all demanding targets, Nez questions whether the rookie can command the 22-25 % share he would need to smash ADP. He also noted that rookie wideouts taken in the 40-60 overall range have historically produced more WR3 than WR2 seasons in best-ball scoring. Until camp reports signal Odunze is leap-frogging veterans or the market knocks a round off his cost, Nez plans to keep fading and preferring established options like Chris Godwin or Jerry Jeudy in the same pocket.

Pat Kerrane took Rome Odunze over Zay Flowers at pick 55, explaining that Odunze’s range of outcomes is wider—and therefore more rewarding—than Flowers’ in Best Ball Mania. Chicago’s hiring of Shane Waldron points to a dramatic uptick in pass rate compared with last year’s run-heavy attack, and Kerrane believes Odunze could immediately step into a DK-Metcalf style X role. He sees a realistic path to a 24-percent target share because the Bears’ WR depth behind DJ Moore is thin and their TE room siphons fewer targets than Baltimore’s. Flowers, by contrast, needs either a Mark Andrews setback or a defensive collapse to crest 1,400 yards. In Kerrane’s words, “the average Flowers season might be better, but Odunze owns the 1-in-10 outcome that wins you $3 million.”

Pete Overzet said he is "betting against Rome right now" because Odunze’s price near pick 60 demands a Year-1 breakout that history says is unlikely, especially after a "pretty brutal" rookie season. Overzet prefers loading up on Luther Burden and Colston Loveland—both available after pick 100—alongside Caleb Williams. That trio lets drafters capture the same Bears ceiling at roughly a five-to-six-round discount and creates a unique late-round stack that few rooms will replicate. With DJ Moore sliding into the fourth and Caleb creeping past pick 100, Pete views Rome as the only Chicago piece still carrying an early-summer premium. Until Odunze falls in line with the rest of the offense, Overzet is fading him and reallocating exposure to the cheaper rookies who offer similar upside without crippling draft capital.

Coventry called Rome Odunze a "very solid investment" with an ADP near WR35. As a rookie he was buried behind Keenan Allen in Shane Waldron’s early-season script and still managed 734 yards, three scores, and two 100-yard performances while catching down-field prayers from an always-pressured Caleb Williams. With Allen gone and the offense healthier, Odunze enters 2025 as the uncontested No. 2 target and owns tangible upside over his mid-round cost.

JSU urged drafters to load up on Rome Odunze now, predicting the rookie’s ADP will shoot into the 50-60 range once training-camp reports start hyping Ben Johnson’s offense and Caleb Williams’ chemistry with his new WR2. Odunze is already climbing boards, and JSU thinks the Chicago media machine plus a few highlight clips will push him another round higher. Grabbing shares before that buzz hits gives drafters closing-line value on a boundary playmaker who could command immediate volume opposite D.J. Moore.

May labeled Rome Odunze the pure X receiver in Chicago and his favorite sophomore breakout candidate. He blamed Odunze’s quiet rookie year on coaching chaos—Matt Eberflus’s historically sluggish offenses and Shane Waldron being retained despite poor results—plus two different play-callers for a rookie QB. With Keenan Allen now gone, both Luther Burden and DJ Moore profile as slot/flanker types, leaving Odunze to dominate perimeter snaps and, in May’s view, potentially the team’s target share. He highlighted Odunze’s flashes as a down-field threat in limited opportunities and believes the extra "runway" will translate into a major leap in 2025.

Jim Coventry said Rome Odunze is a screaming buy at his current WR30 ADP because the environment around him has completely flipped. Odunze flashed as a rookie—54-734-0 on scraps behind Keenan Allen and DJ Moore—yet still posted a 64th-percentile YAC rate despite primarily deep targets, logged two 100-yard games, and saw his targets climb to 6.5 per game after Week 7. With Allen gone, Ben Johnson installing his spacing-heavy scheme, a fully rebuilt offensive line, and Caleb Williams expected to drop back 35-plus times while a shaky Bears defense forces shootouts, Coventry expects Odunze to command true WR1 volume. He projected a jump into the top 24 wideouts and urged drafters to pounce before the market corrects.

Pat Mayo urged drafters to bypass D.J. Moore at his round-four price and grab Rome Odunze 3-4 rounds later. Mayo reminded listeners Odunze finished a brutal WR59 in PPR points per game as a rookie, but noted that 32 % of his targets were officially charted as uncatchable and he now gets Ben Johnson calling plays instead of Shane Waldron. With Odunze a top-10 real-life pick and only 22 years old, Mayo sees legitimate second-year breakout potential—especially if the rumors of Moore griping about Caleb Williams lead Johnson to feature the more "coach-friendly" receiver. Mayo framed Odunze as the classic upside swing: if the Bears offense truly takes a leap, the cheaper guy could match or even outscore Moore while freeing up early-round capital for running backs or elite tight ends.

Chris Raybon echoed Koerner’s caution on Rome Odunze, slotting the second-year wideout in the mid-40s of his projections despite an ADP inside the top 30. Raybon said Odunze’s rookie target-per-route rate and deep-ball disconnect with Caleb Williams make him more volatile than drafters understand. With Luther Burden a legitimate threat to slide into the vacated Keenan Allen role and Loveland drawing Cole Kmet’s old snaps, Raybon sees multiple paths to Odunze being only the WR3— or even WR4— in Chicago’s pecking order. For best ball he still sprinkles shares because Odunze can pop for long touchdowns, but in managed leagues Raybon prefers receivers with a sturdier weekly target floor going in the same range.

Sean Koerner knocked Rome Odunze down to WR35—five spots below his early-summer ADP of WR30—and urged drafters to recognize how many mouths Chicago suddenly has to feed. Keenan Allen’s 150 vacated targets are tempting, but Koerner reminded listeners that GM Ryan Poles immediately replaced that underneath volume by spending Day-2 capital on tight end Colston Loveland and first-rounder Luther Burden. Add DJ Moore’s entrenched alpha role and Koerner sees a capped weekly floor for Odunze, especially because Caleb Williams and Odunze connected on just 3-of-18 deep attempts as rookies. Koerner still likes Odunze’s year-two ceiling under new play-caller Ben Johnson, yet called the current draft price “all ceiling, no buffer,” warning that a realistic outcome has Odunze finishing outside the top-40 wideouts if Burden proves legit or Loveland siphons red-zone looks.

Tyler Knaeble argued that Rome Odunze is being mis-priced as Chicago’s WR3 when he profiles as the only true alpha X receiver on the roster. Drafted ninth overall, Odunze owns a prototype 6-foot-3, 215-pound frame and a collegiate resume that would have made him the WR1 in the 2024 class had he come out this year. Knaeble contrasted Odunze’s outside-dominant skill set with DJ Moore’s after-catch game and Malik Nabers-lite slot usage from Luther Burden, predicting that Odunze will handle the boundary-heavy routes (comebacks, deep ins, go balls) that no other Bears wideout consistently wins. He also reminded listeners that new OC Shane Waldron ran 11 personnel on more than 80 percent of snaps in Seattle, making three full-time receiver roles likely. With Chicago’s stackable offense sliding down boards post-draft, Knaeble is proactively buying Odunze shares before preseason reports push his ADP back up.

Pat Fantasy Dog Pound urged drafters to grab Rome Odunze whenever he slips into the late-fifth/early-sixth round (he cited pick 58 in this draft). Pat reminded listeners Odunze is a top-10 real-life pick who will play in Ben Johnson’s new Chicago offense—a scheme he expects to generate offseason hype and push Bears ADPs higher. He believes the market is double-counting concerns about target competition with D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen, arguing that at least two Chicago pass-catchers will smash and you do not want to be completely underweight when sentiment inevitably flips. Pat called the current price a "perfect value window" before training-camp drumbeats start.

Davis Mattek called Rome Odunze the single biggest loser of Chicago’s draft. After spending first-round capital on Odunze last year, the Bears immediately doubled down by selecting a tight end in Round 1 and another wide receiver with their second pick of the 2025 draft. Mattek views the moves as a clear vote of no confidence, arguing that Odunze’s disappointing rookie season (0.95 yards per route run, only two weekly finishes inside the top-36) forced the front office to diversify its pass-catcher portfolio. With DJ Moore already commanding a 28 % target share and Caleb Williams expected to spread the ball around, Mattek doubts Odunze even reaches a 17 % share. He dropped the sophomore wideout outside his top-60 receivers, recommending drafters chase higher-ceiling profiles in the same ADP pocket.