Player
Rome Odunze
WR
TD rate per catch jumped from 5.6% as a rookie to 13.6% in year 2 — the same target quota now yields twice the scoring. With Caleb Williams entrenched and Odunze logging a 23.6% target share and 35.3% air yards share in 2025, the role is now WR1 in everything but the box score.
His Year 2 TD efficiency (6 in 12 games) is double his rookie rate (3 in 17). The breakout signs are there.
TrendOdunze regular-season production by year
| Year | G | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 (rookie) | 17 | 54 | 734 | 3 |
| 2025 | 12 | 44 | 661 | 6 |
Receiving yards by year
| Season | Yards |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 734 |
| 2025 | 661 |
Why it matters. TD rate per catch jumped from 5.6% as a rookie to 13.6% in year 2 — the same target quota now yields twice the scoring. With Caleb Williams entrenched and Odunze logging a 23.6% target share and 35.3% air yards share in 2025, the role is now WR1 in everything but the box score.
Chicago's last two WRs taken in the top 10 (Terrell 2001, White 2015) combined for 3 TDs in their year-2 seasons. Odunze already has 6.
ComparisonCHI top-10 WR picks since 2000 — year-2 regular season
| Player | Pick | Year 2 | G | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rome Odunze | 9 (2024) | 2025 | 12 | 44 | 661 | 6 |
| Kevin White | 7 (2015) | 2016 | 4 | 19 | 187 | 0 |
| David Terrell | 8 (2001) | 2002 | 5 | 9 | 127 | 3 |
Why it matters. Top-10 WR picks have been a curse in Chicago this century — both prior swings (Terrell, White) produced fewer than 200 receiving yards in year 2 before fading out of the league. Odunze's 661-yard, 6-TD year-2 line in 12 games already eclipses both of their full second seasons.
Despite finishing third in CHI receiving yards, Odunze led the Bears in target share (23.6%), air yards share (35.3%), and WOPR (0.602) in 2025.
SplitCHI 2025 regular-season usage leaders
| Player | Pos | Tgt Sh | Air Yds Sh | WOPR | aDOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rome Odunze | WR | 23.6% | 35.3% | 0.602 | 13.91 |
| Colston Loveland | TE | 16.6% | 16.3% | 0.363 | 9.10 |
| DJ Moore | WR | 16.1% | 19.9% | 0.381 | 11.62 |
| Olamide Zaccheaus | WR | 14.7% | 11.5% | 0.301 | 7.11 |
| Luther Burden III | WR | 13.1% | 10.7% | 0.271 | 7.67 |
Why it matters. Target share, air yards share, and WOPR are the cleanest signals of true No. 1 usage — and Odunze leads every one in Chicago by a wide margin in 2025. The reason his catch total looks like a WR2's is missed games, not a missed role: when he plays, the offense runs through him.
Odunze is one of only two 2024 first-round WRs with multiple 100-yard games in 2025 — and he did it in fewer games than the rest.
Rare2024 first-round WR class — 2025 regular-season 100-yard games
| Player | Pick | G | 100-yd G | Yds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rome Odunze | 9 | 12 | 2 | 661 |
| Ricky Pearsall | 31 | 9 | 2 | 528 |
| Malik Nabers | 6 | 4 | 1 | 271 |
| Marvin Harrison Jr. | 4 | 12 | 0 | 608 |
| Brian Thomas Jr. | 23 | 14 | 0 | 707 |
| Xavier Worthy | 28 | 14 | 0 | 532 |
| Xavier Legette | 32 | 15 | 0 | 363 |
Why it matters. The 2024 receiver class was billed as a generational group, but only Odunze and Pearsall have hit the 100-yard bar more than once in year 2. The boom-game profile separates Odunze from cohort peers who post bigger volume but flatter weekly lines.
Odunze leads the entire 2024 first-round WR class in 2025 TDs — and is the only one to clear five in year 2.
Milestone2024 first-round WR class — 2025 regular-season TDs
| Player | Pick | G | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rome Odunze | 9 | 12 | 6 |
| Marvin Harrison Jr. | 4 | 12 | 4 |
| Xavier Legette | 32 | 15 | 3 |
| Brian Thomas Jr. | 23 | 14 | 2 |
| Malik Nabers | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| Xavier Worthy | 28 | 14 | 1 |
| Ricky Pearsall | 31 | 9 | 0 |
Why it matters. Year-2 TDs are the cleanest separator for a touted WR class — usage and trust have stabilized, and red-zone targets are no longer evenly distributed. Odunze going from 3 TDs as a rookie to leading the class in year 2 reframes the early hierarchy: Harrison was the consensus WR1 of the class, but the box score now reads otherwise.
Three CHI receivers tied for the team TD lead at 6 in 2025 — Odunze got there on the fewest catches by a wide margin.
AnomalyCHI 2025 regular-season — receivers tied at 6 TDs
| Player | G | Rec | Yds | TDs | TD/Catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rome Odunze | 12 | 44 | 661 | 6 | 13.6% |
| DJ Moore | 17 | 50 | 682 | 6 | 12.0% |
| Colston Loveland | 16 | 58 | 713 | 6 | 10.3% |
Why it matters. When three teammates finish tied in TDs, the tiebreaker that matters is opportunity cost — and Odunze took 8 to 14 fewer catches to get there. With his 23.6% target share leading the team, a healthy 17-game season projects to roughly 8-9 TDs, which would be the most for a Bears WR since Alshon Jeffery's 10 in 2014.
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