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Caleb Williams after Chicago Bears draft Rome Odunze: 'We got our guy'

ns_headshot_2024-clearby:Nick Schultz•04/25/24•

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Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams and WR Rome Odunze
© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Thursday night, the Chicago Bears had some decisions to make. After selecting Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick, the franchise also had the No. 9 selection where it could either trade back or draft one of the highly rated wide receivers.

Chicago chose the latter, opting to pick Rome Odunze as its WR3 behind D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen. It’s safe to say Williams is ready to start throwing to his former Pac-12 opponent.

The cameras were rolling when Williams, waiting to meet with reporters via Zoom, found out the Bears were selecting Odunze. They caught his raw reaction as he gets ready to add another high-profile receiver to his arsenal.

“Hell yeah!” Williams said. “I want to spike this water, but we’ve got cameras. We got our guy. We got our guy. … Uno.”

When someone mentioned the good vibes of the day, Williams spoke for almost all of Chicago with his response.

“Yeah, we’re great vibes today,” he said.

Then, when Odunze sat down for a Zoom call with reporters, Williams walked in and interrupted to celebrate with his newest teammate.

Odunze and Williams both spoke about the idea of playing together in Chicago this week, and they were even on the same flight to Detroit for the draft. Now, it’s happening, and they’re both coming off monster seasons at their respective programs.

Odunze was the top target for Michael Penix Jr. at Washington this past year, hauling in an FBS-leading 1,640 yards to go with 13 touchdowns. Williams – the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner – threw for 3,633 passing yards and 30 touchdowns to go with 11 rushing scores in 2023.

Now, after facing each other in the Pac-12 for the last two years, they’re joining forces in Chicago. And for Bears fans, the excitement continues to build.

“I got my guy for 10 years,” Williams said on SiriusXM NFL. “I’m excited for him. … He kicked our tail, so I know how good he is. So I’m really excited to have him on the team as my WR, and I’m ready to go.”

Chicago received the pick from the Carolina Panthers in last year’s trade for No. 1, which they used to select Bryce Young. A 3-14 overall record meant the Bears – who went 7-10 in 2023 – had the chance to select Caleb Williams atop the draft.

That 7-10 mark also gave Chicago the No. 9 pick, and there was speculation about whether the franchise would trade the pick to add more capital. The Bears only had four picks in this year’s draft entering Thursday night, but they opted to bolster their offense in a big way to compete in a loaded NFC North.