Rome Odunze and Michael Penix Jr. both played important roles in elevating the University of Washington football program over the past few seasons. The pair formed a strong connection and were one of the main strengths of the Huskies' offense in 2023, all the way up to the College Football Playoff National Championship. Both players declared for the 2024 NFL Draft and will be selected by their new teams over the next couple of days. Odunze took the opportunity to hype up his former QB Michael Penix Jr. on a recent media hit.
Odunze defended his college QB on an appearance today on The Rich Eisen Show.
“Yeah I mean I don't know what people are saying he's unable to do,” Odunze said. “I mean the season before he was there we were 4 – 8 and he came in with that offense and two years later we win a National Championship game so I don't know if any team has ever done that in history before. But we were you know led by him you know I think he's my QB 1. I really don't see how you can turn on the tape and say that there's anything on the field that he can't do at a high level in the NFL regarding his college film.”
Michael Penix Jr. is projected to be drafted anywhere between the middle of the first round to the end of the second round. He is regarded as being in a tier below the top four signal callers (Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels, JJ McCarthy) along with Oregon's Bo Nix.
Where will Rome Odunze, Michael Penix Jr. be selected in the 2024 NFL Draft?
It is understandable that Odunze felt the need to defender Penix Jr. While he does have some injury concerns, he was productive in his time at Washington — especially when compared to some of the other QBs ranked ahead of him. Penix Jr. finished last season with Washington throwing for 4,903 yards, 36 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. For comparison JJ McCarthy threw for 2,991 yards, which is almost 2,000 yards fewer. However, McCarthy is widely projected to be picked ahead of Michael Penix Jr.
FanDuel has Michael Penix Jr.’s odds to be drafted by the Raiders at +260, followed by the Vikings at +350. The Raiders have the 13th pick and the Vikings have both the 11th and 23rd overall picks in the draft. Penix Jr. has also been linked to the Denver Broncos, who have the 12th pick. There are plenty of QB-needy teams in this year's draft, so there is no doubt that Penix Jr. will be drafted. It's just a matter of where.
We have a much better idea of Rome Odunze's potential landing spots. Odunze is considered one of the top three wide receivers in this year's draft and is expected to be a top 10 pick. It would be shocking to see him slip down the board past teams like the Chicago Bears at 9th overall or the New York Jets at 10th overall. If Odunze does manage to slip out of the top 10, he won't be sliding for long.
The 2024 NFL Draft begins at 8PM EST tonight in Detroit.
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