Rome Odunze Start or Sit Advice for Week 7

Rome Odunze Start or Sit Advice for Week 7

The Chicago Bears got Caleb Williams back from injury last week against the Falcons, and the third-year QB led his team to a 31-23 road win in Atlanta. They’re on a short week for their Week 7 matchup against the Patriots on Thursday Night Football, but can Williams keep the Bears’ offense rolling? Wide receiver Rome Odunze has been underwhelming so far this season, but can you trust the receiver to start in your fantasy football lineup this week against the Patriots? Let’s take a look at his production so far and see what to expect in Week 7’s matchup.

Odunze was potentially positioned to be the team’s top wide receiver coming into the year after the trade of DJ Moore to the Bills. However, he has not stepped up as much as his fantasy managers were hoping so far this year. While he does lead the team in routes run with 211, he only has a 17.0% target share, which trails Luther Burden III’s team-high 22.2% target share. Odunze also trails both Burden and Kalif Raymond in receptions this season and does not yet have a touchdown.

On the positive side, Odunze does have a much deeper ADOT (average depth of target) than both Burden and Raymond, so the big-play potential is still there. With more routes run and more deep passes coming his way, he still has the potential to go off for a big game and big plays, but he hasn’t been able to sync up yet with Williams.

Part of that lack of connection is likely due to the time that Williams missed. With Case Keenum and Tyson Bagent under center, Odunze didn’t have nearly as high a ceiling as he does with Williams. However, he did have his best game of the season while Williams was out, catching six of seven targets for 94 yards in a win over the Jets in Week 4.

Odunze had three catches for 39 yards in Week 6 against the Falcons, but even more concerning is the fact that he only had four targets. Burden, TE Colston Loveland and RB D’Andre Swift all had more targets than he did, and third-round rookie Zavion Thomas matched his total with three catches, presenting a new potential threat to his workload.

The tricky part when deciding to start or sit Odunze is that he brings both the potential upside and some serious risk factors. He’s a very volatile play, but he can still be used as a FLEX play or WR3 this week in emergency situations if no better option is available on the waiver wire or bye weeks have your team stretched thin. However, with the Patriots getting healthier in the secondary and limiting Garrett Wilson last week, it’s not a great matchup for Odunze, so it’s best to sit him until he secures a more reliable role in the offense and starts clicking more regularly with Williams.

For DFS contests like the NFL Showdown $1.25M Thursday Night Showdown [$300K to 1st] (NE @ CHI) on DraftKings, Odunze has a $7,400 salary in a FLEX spot and an $11,100 salary as a Captain’s Pick. He seems a little overpriced based on his recent production and would likely need to get into the end zone to return value. He will likely not be a popular play, so could be a source of leverage if he delivers, but he’s definitely high-risk at that salary.

Start or Sit: Sit Rome Odunze if possible in most standard-sized leagues