Odunze on playing for Bears: “It was meant to be” |
CHICAGO — Wide receiver Rome Odunze is officially a Chicago Bear, giving Chicago perhaps the best wide receiver room in the NFL. He will be paired with Keenan Allen and DJ Moore. But it all starts with the pre-draft process.
Right away, the Bears stood out to Odunze as they were dedicated to getting to know him as a player and a person. “I feel like they truly did their research on me honestly. I think they really understand what I could bring to the offense and what I can bring to this organization and when I was having those conversations with them, it wasn’t like I felt they hadn’t missed anything about me and who I was as a person and who I was as a player. So, I appreciated that,” Odunze said. “I did my research as well on them, knowing that who I was coming in with and who they were trying to get in the draft, and who was already in the wide receiver core as a whole. So, I think we had that mutual respect for one another that created a great visit.” As an NFL Draft prospect, Odunze would have been grateful no matter what team he landed with. However, from Chicago’s dedication to the interview process and how well the interview went, the Bears are the team he truly wanted to go to. “I definitely had the mindset to be happy wherever I went. But, in the back of my mind, the Bears visit went tremendously well and I came into this facility, and the attitude and the effort that they put into my visit and to the conversations that we had (were) incredible. So, I knew when that phone call came in from Illinois that it was going to be the Bears and I was super excited,” Odunze said. “So, I’m happy (general manager Ryan Poles) had that sweat to come get me as well. You always want to be somewhere where you’re wanted. So, I want to be here. They wanted me here and I think that’s a good connection to have.” Unlike most players coming out of the draft, Odunze has already practiced a bit with his new teammates, including quarterback Caleb Williams, Allen, and Moore. Further, his favorite player growing up was Devin Hester, and he used to watch videos of his highlights. For him, it seems like he was meant to be. “It kind of seems like it was meant to be. So, to be somewhere, to have that history growing up, going to the air show, Devin Hester being my favorite player, first jersey is a Bears jersey. It’s almost too good to be true,” Odunze said. “It’s kind of surreal the little things before any of us knew how it was all going to play out that happened before were kind of special to make that moment even more special because it actually came to fruition. It’s super exciting to be a teammate of his and to be along this journey together. Something that’s special and something that, hopefully, when we’re done with our careers, we look back on as the first moment that we realized we were teammates.” With both of them coming from the Pac-12, Odunze and Williams had the opportunity to play against each other in college, and for Odunze, the 2022 Heisman winner certainly made an impression. “It was embarrassing to watch some of the things that he was doing to our defense. So, very special and very unique skill set. When you watch him play, there’s things that he can do on the field that you don’t see any other quarterback doing,” Odunze said. “So, he brings a very unique skill set and he’s very confident in the pocket, very confident extending a play and the play’s never over till the whistle’s blown. You know that.”
