The Chicago Bears will face among the toughest decisions in the NFL draft if wide receiver Rome Odunze falls to them at the No. 9 spot.
Odunze’s talent is as unquestionable as it is verifiable, after he led the nation in receiving yards during the 2023 season and played all the way until the final whistle sounded in the National Championship Game. If Chicago ultimately drafts him, the Bears will land a potentially generational player and franchise tentpole for the next decade or more. However, the trade offers likely to flood the front office if Odunze is available with the 9th pick may be too difficult to pass up.
Mina Kimes of ESPN and Chris Simms of NBC Sports joined forces for a “War Room Mock Draft” of the upcoming first round on Tuesday, April 9. During that exercise, Kimes floated one possible trade offer to the Bears for the 9th pick, assuming Odunze remains on the board.
Her suggestion involved a deal from the Buffalo Bills, which would send Chicago the No. 28 pick in this year’s draft as well as a second-round selection (No. 60 overall) in 2024 and Buffalo’s first-rounder in 2025, which is likely to fall in the mid- to late-20s given the talent on the Bills’ roster.
Trade for Keenan Allen Affords Bears Draft Flexibility With No. 9 Pick
Kimes laid out the scenario for Simms, who bit on the trade pitch and said the hypothetical deal is one to which he would agree were he calling the shots in Chicago.
“So if you’re the Bears, you’re getting pick 28 this year, a first next year — and that’s a Buffalo first, which … might not be that valuable — and throwing in a second-round pick this year,” Kimes said. “So you’re getting a chance to double-dip there in the second round. You do have a fair amount of need still. You have a good team. Is this something you would take if you were the Bears, or would you stick and take Odunze?”
Simms cited Chicago’s deal for receiver Keenan Allen earlier this offseason and the depth of talent at the wideout position in the 2024 draft class, along with the other roster needs the Bears could address by stockpiling top-100 picks, as his joint justification for passing on Odunze.
I think I’m taking it. I like Odunze, right. I’m not as in love with him maybe as much as the rest of the draft public, right. I’m a big fan of Brian Thomas Jr. out of LSU and what he can do. That’s more my cup of team maybe than Odunze is.
But this is, to me, where the Bears getting Keenan Allen in trade are not desperate to have Odunze totally here. And like you said … the Bears are a team I’d go, “Watch out for this year.” I would, because you saw how they played at the end of the year. They were good. Defense has got talent. [If] they can find a way to add a pass rusher with Montez Sweat, fill in a few holes here and there, and I go, “Oh, [they] could surprise people next year.”
Let alone, you trade down, you still could get a receiver. … [He] might not be as good as Odunze or some of the top ones in the draft, but still get a guy that can round out your roster and your team that way. So I would take that trade.
Bears’ Plans for No. 9 Pick May Rest on Evaluation of Rome Odunze, Long-Term Intentions for Keenan Allen
As Simms noted, most of the “draft public” love what Odunze brings to the table.
Chicago is a near-lock to select a QB with the No. 1 overall pick after trading three-year starter Justin Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier in the offseason, and USC star Caleb Williams is the prohibitive favorite the become the Bears’ next starter. Pairing Williams with a similar talent at receiver on the same career timeline may be too good of an opportunity for general manager Ryan Poles to pass up, particularly if the Bears’ are as high on Odunze as most of the rest of the league appears to be.
Another major factor for Chicago in what it decides to do with the 9th selection is what the Bears have planned for Allen, after the team traded for the final year of the wideout’s four-year, $80.1 million contract.
Allen will play next season at the age of 32, and while he’s coming off of a Pro Bowl campaign (his sixth in the last seven years), he has battled injuries costing him a total of 11 regular-season games over the past two campaigns. As such, a long-term extension carries with it inherent risks that might complicate the Bears’ decision on Odunze further, should the franchise have the opportunity to draft him No. 9 overall.
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