It's no secret that Washington Huskies wide receiver Rome Odunze is one of the premier prospects at the position in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Consensus All-American led the country with 1,640 receiving yards in 2023, completely dominating PAC-12 defenses on a weekly basis.
As a result, the football world has put the 21-year-old on a pedestal. One NFL scout even likened Odunze to game-breaking Raiders receiver Davante Adams, via Bleacher Report's Jordan Schultz. Is this an overreaction, or is Odunze really that good?
Odunze is one of the most promising prospects in the NFL Draft
With Adams being one of the most prolific wideouts of the last decade, those aren't easy shoes for Odunze to fill. Adams is a three-time First Team All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler. However, the anonymous scout was more than confident in making the comparison.
“He’s Davante Adams to me, but bigger,” the scout told Schultz. “Watch his releases at the line of scrimmage. There’s some of the same basketball footwork as Adams. Rome’s a classic X, he’s a day one star.”
The young playmaker certainly does have a deep bag of tricks, something that should serve him well at the next level.
Comparing to Adams' film, there do seem to be similarities between the two playmakers.
While Odunze has work to do to get to Adams' level as a football player, the potential is clearly there as long as he keeps developing.
Confidence doesn't seem to be an issue for Odunze, either. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound target skipped his team's Pro Day after performing well at the NFL Combine and lining up several visits with teams. The Arizona Cardinals, Chicago Bears and New York Jets will all meet him, and all three of those franchises own top-10 picks, via Brady Henderson of ESPN.
If Odunze falls to the Jets at the tenth pick, he could be Aaron Rodgers' modern-day version of Adams. Adams sports similar athleticism and hands, but is two inches shorter. If the scout is accurate, the Odunze-Rodgers partnership could be the even more effective battery.
That would be hard to stop if it came to fruition, as Adams enjoyed three 1,000-yard seasons with Rodgers, and two more with 997. Odunze meets with the Jets on Wednesday.
The Bears are another tantalizing destination for the speedster. With Chicago owning both the first and ninth overall picks, they could easily take both Odunze and Caleb Williams in the first round. Mix in the addition of Keenan Allen, and the offense would be immediately revitalized in the post-Justin Fields era.
Odunze is ranked the seventh-best prospect in the nation, via ESPN. With his blend of size, speed and technique, the Las Vegas native has the makings of an NFL star. Whether or not he reaches Davante Adams-levels will not be known for awhile. However, as long as Rome Odunze maintains consistency, the only person he'll need to compare himself with is himself.
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