I thought we were all in agreement that the Bears are back? It's hard to look at the Ben Johnson hire, and then all of Ben Johnson's trades, and then all of Ben Johnson's draft picks, and come to literally any other conclusion. The Bears proverbially win the offseason a lot, but this year, they actually won it – just look at how many nationally-televised games they're (reportedly) scheduled for.
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So the vibes are great. At least, the vibes were great. Bears fans woke up on Tuesday morning and were forced (forced!) to read Ben Solak's latest deep dive into all of the star wide receivers from last year's draft, which of course includes Rome Odunze. Solak hits on basically every single raw nerve that Bears fans have about Odunze's ... shaky? ... rookie season, and even sprinkles in some Caleb Williams panic on the side. It's like killing two birds with one stone, but instead of birds, it's hope.
Ben Solak makes some very concerning points about Rome Odunze (and Caleb Williams)
"Odunze saw the most misses for Chicago because he made the most rookie mistakes, often miscommunicating with Williams on route adjustments and timing. He was also used on the most challenging throws -- downfield, namely. Odunze was sixth in the league last season in unrealized air yards. That's air yards the player got via target but failed to convert into receiving yards for whatever reason. In this case, it was mainly because of uncatchable footballs ... Though I am more than a little worried about the severe lack of chemistry between Williams and Odunze, I am willing to give Odunze a lot of grace for suffering through a carousel of offensive coaches on a team rife with execution errors."
Solak's a smart guy, and all the points he makes here – not to mention the entire argument, which is worth a read if you have it in you – make sense. But still: it is extremely uncool to do this. Extremely uncool. This is something I could deal with in August, when everyone's playing football and I can distract myself with Colston Loveland training camp touchdown videos. Right now, though? Now is not the time for this, Ben Solak. And I think you know that.
It'll be fine. Ben Johnson won't let this thing fail. Caleb Williams is still a star. The Bears are still back. [nervous laughter] I'M FINE.