Chicago Bears: Keenan Allen thinks Rome Odunze is better than he was as rookie

Chicago Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen, a six-time Pro Bowler, says that top-ten rookie Rome Odunze is already better than he was as a rookie.

Chicago Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen has already seen enough of Rome Odunze to know one thing about him. The six-time Pro Bowl receiver has been one of the best wide receivers in the league for quite some time now. He’s seen it all and knows what a good receiver looks like.

After watching Odunze in veteran minicamp and two days in training camp, he already feels that Odunze is a better player than he was as a rookie.

Allen has 904 catches in a career that started in 2013. That ranks him third in the NFL in that period. What is more amazing is that he missed 40 games in his career. Imagine how many more he would have if he had not missed so many.

It says a lot for the rookie Odunze that someone of Allen’s stature has such glowing words for him. Allen says that Odunze is much more developed as a receiver than he was as a rookie.

He’s a little bit better than me when I came in. He’s faster. I think he comes out of his breaks better than I did when I was that young. He looks more polished than I was as a receiver.

That should bring some more excitement and hope to a Chicago Bears fanbase that is desperate to see the team return to its former glory. Except for a good year here and there, the franchise has been stuck in mediocrity for the better part of three decades.

Now it seems the team is ready to get back to playing meaningful games. General Manager Ryan Poles completely overhauled the offense. It has gone from one that struggled to score points and move the ball to one that could run like a well-oiled machine that could blow up the scoreboard.

A big reason for the hope was the acquisition of both Allen and Odunze. Allen had another excellent season in 2023. He had 108 catches for 1,243 yards and 7 touchdowns. It was the sixth time in his illustrious career that he eclipsed 1,000 yards and the fifth time he had over 100 catches in a season.

Odunze’s final two seasons have been exceptional. Over that time, he has accumulated 2,785 yards on 167 catches and 20 touchdowns. He was the Chicago Bears’ second top-ten pick, chosen at number nine. While he was the third wide receiver picked in the draft, many scouts feel he could be the best receiver in this class.

Allen and Odunze join another very talented wide receiver, D.J. Allen. Allen played even better than the other two. In 2023, he had 96 catches for 1,364 yards and 8 touchdowns. Since entering the league in 2018, he has had four seasons in which he accumulated more than 1,000 yards.

The Chicago Bears trio of wide receivers may be the best trio of receivers in the NFL. They are talented and have everything you want in a receiver. They can run great routes, create separation, and make big plays with their hands and their bodies. Odunze is in a great situation in which he can learn from the best at his position.

While the other receivers picked ahead of Odunze will have the pressure of carrying their offenses, Odunze can feel comfortable knowing that he has two of the best alongside him. There will be no worries about trying to carry this Chicago Bears offense.

Odunze will face a lot of the opponents’ second-tier defenders with all the weapons the Chicago Bears have. That means he will feast off of them and make some big plays. Eventually, teams will have to put some of their best defenders on him and that means Moore and Allen, as well as the tight ends and running backs, can feast themselves. It will be a “pick your poison” situation for opponents.

If Odunze can go on the field and prove Allen right, there will be a lot of big plays from Odunze and a lot of happy fans in Chicago Bears Nation.

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