Rome Odunze: I know the NFL game better this year, can play more freely

The 2024 season didn’t play out as the Bears hoped it would, but there could be some silver linings to their 5-12 season.

One of them would be the experience that young players like wide receiver Rome Odunze gained while going through the year. The 2024 first-round pick had 54 catches for 734 yards and three touchdowns during his rookie season and said last week that he learned he “needed to build upper-body mass” to combat the physicality of the professional game.

Odunze also learned the intricacies of playing receiver in the NFL and believes that those lessons will benefit him this fall.

“It’s a different game than college football,” Odunze said, via Jayna Bardahl of TheAthletic.com. “There are different windows, different ways to get open, and there’s a different pace that you have to get adapted to. 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.”

The need for Odunze’s fellow 2024 first-rounder Caleb Williams to improve has been a focal point of discussion about the Bears since the end of the 2024 season, but a step forward from Odunze would be another welcome change as they try to build a winning team in Chicago.