Latest news with #RomeOdunze
CBS News
3 days ago
- Sport
- CBS News
Bears' receiver Rome Odunze talks new offense, building connection with Caleb Williams
Bears fans got a bit of bad news when Saturday morning's practice was closed to fans because of stormy weather in the area. The good news is that Caleb Williams seemed to have a better day building a connection with Rome Odunze. As a new Bears offense looks to grow during this year's training camp, so does the chemistry between Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze. Last year's top ten picks developed a connection during a 5-12 rookie season, and they plan on leaning on each other in year two. "You know, year under our belt definitely, you know, helps us continue to build that. The new offense learning it together, having the knowledge playing in the NFL season, putting that into this offense, building a connection that way is great too," Odunze said. Mastering new head coach Ben Johnson's offense is something Odunze said will take time, but the receiver is already feeling comfortable in it, and said he will be ready to do whatever is asked of him. "I want the ball every play but I'll play my role within the offense, and you know, Caleb is a great quarterback who is gonna be versatile with his weapons as well as Ben in the offensive staff as well, they know how to get the ball around." He adds, "Of course I want to be that number one guy for him, go kill it and be that duo, but we have a bunch of playmakers on the field that's gonna do a good job for us." Overall, the offense had a better day, with the two-minute portion of practice ending with a touchdown pass from Williams to Odunze. Rookie tight end Colston Loveland participated in team drills for the first time as he continues to ramp up from shoulder surgery.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Bears camp observations: Colston Loveland gets involved, Caleb Williams leads TD drive
LAKE FOREST, Ill. — On his second throw in a seven-on-seven period, Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams looked to his left and hit rookie tight end Colston Loveland on an out route. It was Loveland's debut in the drill, and the first time we've gotten to see the No. 10 pick in competitive drills. Advertisement He looked smooth. He caught the balls thrown his way. And he gave his quarterbacks a new target. 'Great hands, very agile, can block. He's got everything you desire in a tight end,' wide receiver Rome Odunze said. 'So, really looking forward to his development in the years ahead.' The offense had its best practice thus far, sending the team into its first off day of camp on a positive note. Starting near midfield with 1:08 on the clock, Williams began a hurry-up drill with a swing pass to D'Andre Swift. He found Swift again as he backed away from pressure. Following a delay of game, Williams connected with Olamide Zaccheaus, then with tight end Cole Kmet, who made a diving catch on the right sideline. Putting a punctuation mark on the drill, Williams floated a short fade to Odunze for a touchdown. The second-year wideout came down with it over cornerback Nahshon Wright. 'It was just an up-and-down play, kind of quick, one-on-one man out there,' Odunze said. 'Caleb gave me a shot, I was able to execute (on) the ball. Obviously, need to continue to build that and have that as a weapon in our offense, something that I did a lot in college as well. So, just building that connection, which I think we'll show this year.' The play came together quickly, but in those split seconds before Williams threw the ball, Odunze had to keep Wright from knowing what was coming. 'There's a lot to it — just having the savviness, because obviously it's red zone, so you don't want to release too quick,' he said. 'You don't want to get to the spot too often. You kind of want to meet the ball exactly at the point where you want to catch it and have late hands with it. So, it's all of that. Not giving the DB any sort of tips that I may be doing a fade.' The Bears gave right tackle Darnell Wright a rest day, something that came about after taking a look at his GPS readings — the team tracks a variety of metrics after each practice. Head coach Ben Johnson said it wasn't an injury. Theo Benedet, an undrafted rookie signing out of Canada in 2024, took Wright's place. That's an impressive depth chart climb for Benedet, who spent all of last season on the practice squad. Advertisement Kiran Amegadjie got the first-team snaps at left tackle but exited the field with head trainer Andre Tucker. Braxton Jones was taking the second-team reps, but rookie Ozzy Trapilo handled the left tackle spot with the starters for the two-minute drill. Center Doug Kramer also had to leave practice with an apparent injury. One thing Johnson noted when recapping Friday's practice is how the offense finished strong. And it did, which seemed to carry into Saturday's session. There's a difference between the offense having a rough day and concern levels for the regular season rising. It hadn't been very smooth for Williams and company for three days, but Johnson wasn't fazed. 'We're not frustrated at all. We're right where we need to be,' he said. 'In fact, I told the unit last night — to see where they came from, the springtime, to where we've been for three days, we're not having to coach alignment, we're not having to coach finish, we're not having to coach 'the standard,' as you say. 'Now we're coaching football. Now we're reading coverage and we're able to accumulate reps. Like I alluded to before, the beautiful thing about it is, our guys, man, they're learning. We're not making the same mistake twice. That goes for the guy that's getting the rep and that goes for the guys not getting the rep. They're learning from everything. We're not frustrated whatsoever.' Defensive end Montez Sweat doesn't always participate in voluntary spring practices. He did this year, however, and that wasn't lost on his head coach. 'He was very disappointed with how the season went last year — as a lot of the guys in the locker room were, both individually and as a team — and felt such a way, so compelled, that he was here throughout the springtime, which is not something that he's done in the past,' Johnson said. 'He's committed to this team. He's committed to getting better.' Advertisement Sweat had 5.5 sacks last season after posting 12.5 in 2023, a year he split between Washington and Chicago. He was not fully healthy last season. In five games against the Lions with Johnson calling plays, Sweat had eight QB hits and three sacks, including four QB hits when the Bears upset the Lions in 2023. 'When he turns that thing on, he is hard in the pass-rush game,' Johnson said. 'It's hard to block him. You have to account for him. You move him around, right side, left side, (it) makes it even more difficult because you're looking to help your tackles out with some chips and some nudges — and if you don't know where he's going to be, then that makes it that much harder.' Sweat said that Dennis Allen's 'complex' scheme 'keeps you on your toes,' and that he's been watching some tape of Cameron Jordan, who went to seven Pro Bowls with Allen running the Saints' defense. 'Cam Jordan has always kind of been one of those premier pass rushers in the league. It's kind of hard not to watch him when you play my position,' Sweat said. 'I have gone back and looked at some of the film of how he's excelled in this defense under Dennis Allen.' • Rookies Luther Burden III, Shemar Turner and Zah Frazier remained out. Johnson said he's hopeful that Burden will return soon. • Nickel cornerback Kyler Gordon's blitz helped force an incomplete pass during team drills. • The Bears will be putting on the pads for practice when they return to Halas Hall early next week. (Top photo of Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet: Kamil Krzaczynski / Imagn Images)
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
4 Standouts from Day 3 of Bears training camp 2025
Chicago Bears training camp is in full swing ahead of the 2025 regular season. Under new head coach Ben Johnson, the Bears are preparing a return to relevancy with important practices and meetings at Halas Hall. The starters, such as quarterback Caleb Williams, wide receivers Rome Odunze and DJ Moore, and defensive linemen Grady Jarrett and Montez Sweat, will hone their skills as they adjust to a new system. Rookies such as tight end Colston Loveland, receiver Luther Burden III, tackle Ozzy Trapilo, and defensive tackle Shemar Turner will look to hit the ground running ahead of their first season. And depth players like offensive lineman Doug Kramer, defensive end Dominique Robinson, and safety Jonathan Owens will try and hang on to a roster spot with competition nipping at their heels. Following every Bears' training camp practice, we at Bears Wire will highlight a select number of players who stood out during the day. Here are the players who made plays on Day 3, the first practice in front of fans: 1. WR Rome Odunze Through three days of camp, the first-team offense is still working on building chemistry out on the practice fields. But big plays are happening from time to time with some of the star players, including catches made by Rome Odunze. The second-year wide receiver was busy during team drills, hauling in passes by Caleb Williams. The best one came halfway through the practice when Odunze hauled in a catch down the right sideline, according to Bear Report's Zack Pearson. Odunze also caught another score towards the end of practice during red zone work, as Pearson notes. The offense will need to start coming together sooner rather than later, but at least Williams can count on Odunze to make the big plays when needed. 2. QB Tyson Bagent The battle for QB2 rages on between Tyson Bagent and Case Keenum, and while the former was working with the third team on Friday, he showed he belongs with the backups at the very least. Bagent had a solid day overall, both in 7-on-7s and full team drills. According to CHGO's Greg Braggs Jr., Bagent was surgical. He tossed a couple of easy touchdowns to running back Roschon Johnson and wide receiver Samori Toure and finished with a nice strike to running back Ian Wheeler. Bagent also connected with JP Richardson a couple of times, per Bear Report, showing that their chemistry has been building as of late. While some fans will be disappointed that Bagent isn't threatening for the starting job, the Bears should feel good they have a young backup who continues to impress. 3. DE Montez Sweat Montez Sweat can make a quarterback's life difficult. Just ask Williams, who has to go against him in practice every single day. Sweat was terrorizing the offense on Friday, though some of it was by design. The former Pro Bowl edge rusher blew up a couple of plays, which resulted in throwaways and rollouts. According to 670 The Score's Chris Emma, Sweat broke through on the first play of full-team drills to force a throwaway. He did it again on the second play, according to Bear Report's Zack Pearson. While offensive coordinator Declan Doyle told the media some of that was intentional to get Williams used to pocket breakdowns, there's no question Sweat stood out while chasing down the quarterback. 4. S Jaquan Brisker The defense swarmed the offense for much of the day, which included a pair of interceptions by a couple of veterans. The first one came thanks to safety Jaquan Brisker, who took a tipped pass and made sure to come down with it during 7-on-7s. Brisker has had a couple of standout plays to start camp, but this was the most notable. According to CHGO's Greg Braggs Jr., Brisker maintained a scoring mentality and took the ball the other way once he secured the pick. Seeing Brisker back healthy following his scary concussion last year is good enough, but having him make plays early is a promising sign for his impact for the upcoming season.
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bears wide receiver hosts youth camp in Champaign
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze was host to a youth football camp in Champaign on Saturday. The camp, put on in partnership with Flex Work Sports, welcomed more than 400 kids to St. Thomas More High School. Advertisement There was also a surprise guest appearance from another Bears player: Wide receiver DJ Moore. Moore, who led the Bears in receiving yards on the 2024 season, showed up unannounced. 'He did not have to do that,' Odunze said. 'I didn't tell him I was doing a camp out here. I didn't tell anybody to come out just because it was a little bit of a ways from where everybody is at. That's my guy, that's my brother. He came out here with his family so it's always good to see them, they're doing well. So it means a lot to me that DJ would come out here but that's the Bears organization and all the guys there are very heartfelt and meaningful in that way. So, DJ's my guy, appreciate him.' 'I love Rome,' Moore told WCIA. 'Rome came to my camps so had to show the same respect and make my way out here with my family.' Advertisement It's one of a handful of camps Odunze is hosting over the 2025 offseason. He'll be in Rockford, Ill. for another one on Sunday, July 13. 'I have a lot of fun, of course, just giving back to them,' he said. 'Them having an opportunity to come out here and work hard, meet somebody in the NFL – That's what it's about. So, hopefully it provides them some sort of inspiration because I know they inspire me with all their energy and all their excitement.' As for the 2025 season, which will be Odunze's second in the NFL and the Bears' first under new head coach, he says the excitement is visible. 'Everybody is fired up, as they should be,' he said. 'We're building excitement and anticipation for the season and it's deservingly so. Exciting times, lots of changes… I think we have the right pieces to put it all together…' Advertisement The camp consisted of various drills, 7-on-7 games with Odunze at quarterback and photos/autographs. Mason Davis attended the camp from Monticello and left with a lasting memory. 'I caught a touchdown pass from Rome,' Davis said. 'He's a lot taller than I expected, but he was amazing today.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to
New York Times
17-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Bears fan survey results: Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams have many believers in Chicago
Nearly 4,000 Chicago Bears fans had their voices heard and made one thing clear. There is unprecedented belief in new coach Ben Johnson. Whether it's confidence in Johnson's play calling, optimism that he will get the best out of quarterback Caleb Williams, or his coaching style, Bears fans finally feel good about the coach — and he hasn't had his first game yet. Advertisement Fans are excited about the Williams-Rome Odunze pairing, too. They welcome the Joe Thuney addition. And with Thuney, fellow guard Jonah Jackson and center Drew Dalman in the fold, they finally aren't too worried about the offensive line. With training camp around the corner, let's dive into the results of our sixth annual Bears fan survey. Confidence in Williams overall did increase, despite a sometimes shaky rookie season. Most notably, the number of Bears fans who are worried that Williams won't pan out plummeted from 7.4 percent last season to 0.6 percent this year. The Halas Hall structure was a worst-case scenario for Williams, going through two play callers and two head coaches in his first season. But fans saw enough to still believe in his potential. How does this compare with the pre-Year 2 perception of Justin Fields, who was about to start with a new coach after showing some flashes as a rookie? It's not as big a disparity as one might think, but Williams still has inspired more believers. The Ben Johnson Effect was in full effect for this question, with an overwhelming majority believing the new coach and play caller will have the biggest impact on Williams. The Bears are certainly paying him to, and he has the accolades from his time with Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions that he can help Williams get to the next level. It was somewhat surprising to see Johnson defeat the offensive line that badly, considering how long it's been since fans could feel confident about the group up front. We received several write-in votes for 'all of the above,' which beat out the rookie pass catchers. A few people also noted that Williams' simply getting the rookie experience will help him the most in Year 2. Clunkiness prevented one of the choices from being 'holding on to the ball too long and taking sacks,' so it's possible voters considered both pocket presence and situational awareness to be examples of that, as those two traits combined for nearly 80 percent. One storyline to track will be how in sync Williams and wide receiver DJ Moore can be this season. It never seemed to fully click last season, for myriad reasons. The confidence meter for Johnson is off the charts. Only 42 voters selected '1' or '2.' For perspective, Johnson's 34.3 percent vote share for '5' — most confident — is nearly seven times more than what Matt Eberflus received ahead of his first season as coach. When's the last time Bears fans could be legitimately excited about a new playbook? Matt Nagy's first season included several fun plays and an offense that ranked ninth in points scored, but you have to go back to Marc Trestman's first season (2013) to find a Bears offense that ranked better than 15th in total offense (eighth). That history is reflected in these results, with fans enthusiastic about what Johnson brings to offensive play calling. Advertisement Here are some of the write-in responses: 'His insistence that the details are done correctly.' 'Creating a culture of accountability while still being innovative.' 'I've decided that 'coach speech' is just 'coach without any ideas speech.' I appreciate he is specific with his media answers and avoids 'coach without any ideas speech.'' 'He seems like one of those superstar execs you come across — no BS, honest, curious enough to get to the depth of a problem and provide thoughtful responses. That may be hyperbole, but consider me impressed.' No surprise Thuney won this one, but it's a little surprising how much he dominated it. That shows how much this franchise has missed out on having someone of Thuney's stature on the offensive line over the years. Bears fans love their centers. This is the franchise of Bulldog Turner, Olin Kreutz, Jay Hilgenberg and Roberto Garza. That context helps illustrate the gap between Drew Dalman and the rest of the newcomers. It's a similar vote share for this question, but I wanted to highlight defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, who received only 5.8 percent of the votes, well below Dalman. Jarrett's impact could be massive in the locker room, something that won't be seen in the stat sheet, and he did have only 2 1/2 sacks last season. But he didn't miss a start and still had 12 quarterback hits. If it were up to general manager Ryan Poles, I wonder whether he hopes Dayo Odeyingbo is the ultimate answer. That would be a major win for the front office if he breaks out as a major threat off the edge. The top three picks all generate a lot of buzz with the fans. Colston Loveland, being a top-10 pick inserted in Johnson's offense, is the obvious winner, but college football fans are well aware of Luther Burden's capabilities. And boy, how ecstatic would Bears fans be if Ozzy Trapilo winds up the long-term answer at left tackle? This question probably shouldn't have included Williams, but I was wondering what the gap would be between the quarterback and Odunze. It's still sizable. One could perceive this question as who is going to break out, and defensive end Austin Booker would be a good option … but not many perceive it that way. More on Odunze's popularity to come. The Bears head into 2025 with Montez Sweat, who had only 5 1/2 sacks last season, and newcomer Odeyingbo as the starting defensive ends, followed by Booker and Dominique Robinson. There's not a lot of depth, and there are a lot of questions, as seen in these results. How about the drastic shift for the offensive line? In the history of the survey, it's the lowest percentage of people ranking the offensive line atop their concerns list. Running back, another 'draft need' position at which the Bears didn't take anyone until Round 7, makes sense as the second-place finisher here. There will be a lot of pressure on D'Andre Swift. Quarterback came in fourth place, which doesn't necessarily jibe with the opening question about Williams. And how can fans be concerned about Williams' backups? The trio of Moore, Odunze and Burden puts fans at ease when it comes to wide receiver. I'd probably argue that the runner-up, cornerback, is the deepest position when you consider guys like Terell Smith and Josh Blackwell are backups. It's a fun competition to compare Moore, Odunze and Burden to Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon and Tyrique Stevenson. The numbers for the Bears chairman are pretty similar to last year, likely reflective of the way the franchise was able to land Johnson as coach. Bears chairman George McCaskey's 'F' grade went down from 11.4 percent in 2024 to 4.1 percent this summer. His 'C' share did go up from 27 percent to 31.3. This is the first time we've put the report card out for Bear president/CEO Kevin Warren. In 2023, after Warren was hired, 41 percent put '4' to rank their confidence in him, and 19.9 percent entered '5.' Those were (probably) record numbers for a Bears front-office member — at least until Johnson arrived. Two years later, a new stadium isn't under construction yet, and the team has struggled. That might explain why a plurality of voters went with 'C.' Warren's ability to help hire Johnson has to also be a factor with 'B' as a close second. Last year, most fans weren't sucked into the Bears' announcement of putting everything into building a new stadium downtown at the museum campus. Despite the team's singular focus at this time last year on Chicago, 60.8 percent said they expected Arlington Heights to be the Bears' home in 2030. This summer, now that we know the team has shifted back to the suburbs, that percentage went up nearly 13 points, while only 8.4 percent of you still have hope for a new stadium downtown. If the team can actually get a shovel in the ground this year, we'll have to come up with a new stadium-related question in 2026. This might have been the most interesting distribution of votes. I did not know what to expect, but many fans seem to be unmoved by the Bears' impression of the Michael Scott 'snip snap' meme from 'The Office.' The back-and-forth between the city and the suburbs has bothered 35.8 percent of you, but most are either not at all frustrated or simply indifferent. Williams' vote share went down slightly and Odunze's increased. There are a lot of Odunze fans in town. He has the playmaking potential and the personality to win over Chicago. The biggest mover was Moore, who went from 17.2 percent last year down to 4.1 percent. Maybe a lot of fans already have his jersey? Maybe it's a sign of a shift to Odunze and Burden? Sweat also saw his votes decrease extensively, which isn't surprising after a tough season. Meanwhile, Jaylon Johnson saw his percentage double, and Gordon, recent recipient of a new contract, made the top eight. Bears fans still love their punter. As I mentioned last year, jersey purchasing should include staying power. An effective punter has that, and Taylor should be here for a long time. It's another win for Sid Luckman, his fourth in a row. However, his vote share decreased by 2.6 percent, so he'll need a strong 2025 season ahead in next summer's survey. Jay Cutler and Jim McMahon chipped away at his lead. Williams received 40 votes, followed by Erik Kramer (23) and Kyle Orton (14). Some semblance of 'no one' received 28 votes, and there was one vote for the franchise's all-time leader in passer rating: Pat O'Donnell. For the second year in a row, '2021 Russell Wilson saying he wanted to be traded to the Bears' got a vote. And to the voter who wrote, 'What kind of monster asks this EVERY year,' it's my sociological experiment. Maybe one day Williams will let me eliminate this question from the survey. Another year, another dominant victory for Walter Payton, the greatest running back in NFL history. This year, he nearly quadrupled Brian Urlacher's second-place vote total. The order behind 'Sweetness' remained the same as last year — Urlacher, Devin Hester, Charles Tillman, Dick Butkus, Matt Forte and Gale Sayers. Advertisement A few entertaining 'remember these Bears?' entries: Harold Jones-Quartey, Brad Maynard, Devin Aromashodu and Mac Percival. ESPN 1000's Tom Waddle received 14 votes — twice as many as Williams, but four shy of Akiem Hicks. For the second year in a row, a plurality of Bears fans believe this team can win nine games. A curiosity of expectations led me to bump the scale up to between seven and 11 wins. Last year, 9.9 percent of voters went with 'seven wins' or 'six wins or fewer.' Only 4.2 percent went with seven or fewer this year. Somewhere between eight and 10 wins seems to be the right range for this team for 2025, and not many fans got too irrationally excited about an 11-plus-win team. Yes, the scale was altered, but 28.9 percent of fans believe the Bears can win at least 10 games, which bests 2020's mark of 24.8 percent as the survey's high-water mark for double-digit-win optimism. (Photo of Caleb Williams: David Banks / USA Today)
