The 2025 season got off to a fast start for Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze, who was putting up stats that would have had him pacing for over 1,000 yards.
Odunze's foot injury cost him the last month of football, and he hasn't played since the Black Friday game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The star wide receiver shared with reporters the difficulty of standing on the sidelines instead of being on the field with his teammates.
"It’s definitely not for me. It’s tough to not play. I don’t think I’ve been out this long in a while. So it’s definitely a challenge."
"Just the rollercoaster of it. Obviously, there’ve been some up and down weeks with what I’ve been dealing with. Just kind of going through those things. Obviously not playing on Sundays is tough when I have the passion for the game that I do."
Odunze is close to returning to the field for Chicago
It's been a bit, but the Bears did see Odunze practice in the last workout before their Week 18 season finale against the Detroit Lions. He was actually listed as questionable for the Lions contest, but it seems very unlikely that he will play with only one practice completed this week.
This season in 12 games, Odunze had 44 receptions for 661 yards and six touchdowns. It became clear that, before being sidelined by the team, the foot injury was bothering him, as he struggled down the stretch to get open and had only 102 yards in his last three games.
Chicago has been able to ride the waves of not having their top receiver with great performances from DJ Moore, Colston Loveland, and Luther Burden III. This offense hums better when Odunze is also a threat in the passing game.
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Odunze will have to fully work on the foot in the offseason to potentially get surgery on it, but if he can run on it decently in the postseason, Bears fans can bet he will be on the field.