2024 Rookie Profile: WR Rome Odunze (Fantasy Football)

This year’s draft is chock full of WR talent, with Marvin Harrison Jr. as the presumed WR1. But there is incredible talent just below that top tier. One of the most complete prospects is the University of Washington’s Rome Odunze. Odunze hails from Las Vegas, Nevada, where he attended Bishop Gorman High School and was the 2019 Gatorade Football Player of the Year for the state of Nevada. After a senior year with 54 catches for 1,222 yards and 15 TDs, Odunze committed to the University of Washington. Odunze was also a sprinter in high school – he won the Nevada 4A state title in the 200m and 400m relays. He was also a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award in 2023.

When asked about the history of his unique name, Odunze says that his father, James, picked it out because he’s always been a huge history buff. “My pops just really liked the Roman empire, with some of the cool things within it…and some of the cultural influence they’ve had on the world,” Odunze explained. But Odunze is so much more than a WR hailing from the West with a cool name. Let’s dig into his rookie profile. For this series, the writers at The Fantasy Footballers will be covering many of the top prospects in the 2024 class. We will look at each player’s production profile, measurables, and film to give an outlook for fantasy football in 2024 and beyond.

Editor’s Note: This article is part of our Rookie Profile series going on until the 2024 NFL Draft. For more on each rookie, check out Andy, Mike, and Jason’s exclusive rookie rankings and the production profiles found only in the Dynasty Pass, part of the UDK+ for 2024.

College Production Profile

One of the first things that sticks out when looking at Odunze’s college profile is that he did not declare early. He played all four years at Washington, even though he only played two games in his first year. We know that traditionally early declare WRs usually have more success in the NFL and fantasy. After all, if you forgo the final year in college to enter the NFL draft, you are generally fairly talented. Early declare WRs usually garner around four or more fantasy points per game over those WRs who have a full college career, and there have only been 14 four-year WR prospects to be drafted in the top 16 since 2005. Only a few of these guys could be considered hits when it comes to NFL production. The two biggest were DeVonta Smith and Chris Olave.

All that said…I ain’t concerned here. Odunze stands a strong chance of being the exception and not the rule.

The growth of Odunze throughout college cannot be ignored. With a breakout age of 19.3 (which is considered excellent), Odunze improved every year in college. His increases across the board with receptions, yards, and TDs are precisely what you want to see in a top-of-the-line profile. This is the type of player who will continue to work on his skills and improve as his career progresses in the NFL.

Odunze’s 1,640 yards receiving in 2023 were the most of all the WRs in his draft class and a single-season record for Washington. He was tied for third with the number of TDs he pulled in and had the second-most targets of WRs with 140. He ended his college career with a dominator percentage of 33%, which is the share of the team’s receiving yards and receiving TDs per game.

Rome might not have been built in a day, but Odunze did pretty darn well in four years at Washington.

Measurables

Whereas Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers chose not to participate in the combine with on-field drills, Odunze decided it was the perfect opportunity to showcase his skills.

And showcase he did. With a build close to perfect for an NFL WR, Odunze is just over the average height and weight of an NFL WR1, and he carries it exceptionally well. Odunze was in the middle of the pack with his 40-YD time, which is still relatively fast, as nine men ran it in less than 4.4 this year. We can see his background as a sprinter when we look at his 10-yard split time, tying for fourth among WRs who ran the drill.

He dominated in the three-cone and shuttle drills, illustrating how quick his feet are and how incredible he is at turning on a dime and continuing to accelerate. 

What’s on Tape

Games Viewed: Oregon (2023), Michigan (2023), Texas (2023), Cal (2023), Michigan State (2023)

1. Overall Size

Odunze, who measured 6’3” and 212 lbs at the combine in Indy, was among the heaviest and tallest WRs that attended. He was the fourth heaviest and tied for the third tallest. Odunze used his size to win at the point of the catch multiple times in his college career.

In 2023, QB Michael Penix Jr. threw so many balls that looked like incomplete passes, but because of his stature, Odunze was able to snatch them out of the air, battle the defender for possession, and bail out his quarterback.

2. Technical Proficiency

Even at his height and build, Odunze doesn’t win with his athleticism like you think he would. Sure, he demonstrated it at the combine – his scores were solid, making him an even better overall prospect, but Odunze’s brain and football prowess are what he uses to showcase his skills. Odunze is one of the best route runners in his class, and his ability to efficiently separate is incredible.

Although he didn’t participate in all the drills in Indianapolis, the ones he did showcased his technical skills. Odunze was fourth in the three-cone drill and second in the shuttle drill, and you can see how it translates on the field.  His ability to change direction and his overall quickness allow him to dodge defenders and gain valuable yardage where other WRs might be stopped in their tracks.

Rome Odunze notices the DB bails to the outside right off the snap and uses this to gain the inside leverage and just runs away from him, the throw was a touch late allowing the DB to gain back the ground but Odunze still makes the play at the catch point with some physicality. pic.twitter.com/ADzjTTxobf

— Jeremy (@PopesFFH) March 14, 2024

3. Contested Catch Ability

Whether it was bailing Penix out on a questionable throw or just the ability to battle a defender and come down with the ball, Odunze is incredible when it comes to contested catches. In his final year at Washington, he had 24 contested targets. He had the fourth most contested targets among WRs in his draft class with at least 30 targets. The opposition knew he was good, and they played him as such.

But it still didn’t matter—Odunze came down with 17 of those contested targets, translating to a 70.8% contested catch rate. He has an incredible talent for tracking the football, adjusting accordingly, and battling a defender for the catch.

But don’t assume that this number of contested catches means that Odunze is unable to create separation. His high number of targets – 140, the second most in his draft class – means there are simply more instances of a catch being contested. In addition, by watching his tape, you can see he manages to separate well and put distance between himself and the defenders. His speed and size help him here.

Washington WR @RomeOdunze is a DAWG

2023 CFB stats:

92 Receptions
1,640 Receiving Yards
14 Touchdowns

Which team will land Odunze in the 2024 NFL Draft?
pic.twitter.com/jE2mRFJtAP

— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) January 12, 2024

What’s Not on Tape

1. Work Ethic

Until a few weeks ago, I would say this quality was something you couldn’t see on tape. Then I watched Saturday night at the combine and the three-cone drill. Odunze scored great on the drill, coming in with one of the fastest times at 6.88, but that wasn’t enough for him. He was the last prospect on the field, as his goal was to break 6.6 for the drill.

There was no need for him to stay on the field and continue to fight, but he did. What a dude to go into battle with – clearly trustworthy in the big moments and proven to continue to work to better himself for the team.

#Washington wideout Rome Odunze lingered on the Lucas Oil Field late Friday, long after the stadium had emptied out, trying to break 6.6 seconds in the three cone drill. This dude. pic.twitter.com/K6F1ZqN9Jn

— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) March 3, 2024

2. Personality

Talent will only get you so far. Andy, Mike, and Jason have made countless mentions on the podcast about players who consistently get resigned to deals and contracts that seem insane regarding their production level. What is the elephant in the room here? Their personality, ability to lead in the locker room, and ability to motivate those around them. 

A rising tide raises all ships, and while some heavily touted prospects did not speak to the media at the combine, Odunze didn’t flinch when he was asked an odd question. 

For some reason Rome Odunze was asked if he could land a plane in an emergency. pic.twitter.com/CeF0Y3OzTB

— Bob Condotta (@bcondotta) March 1, 2024

3. Less YAC Than We Would Like

We are nitpicking here. Odunze only had 390 yards after contact in his final year at Washington, outside the top 20 WRs in his draft class. He shows the ability to fight after contact but did not translate to a huge number. 

4. Short and Intermediate Targets

Odunze was a beast when it came to deep targets in 2023. He had 49 deep targets, the most in his draft class, and he caught almost 47% of them. Odunze loved going deep; 35% of his targets were 20 yards or more. We saw less of him in the short and intermediate areas of the field. He had 25.7% of his targets in the intermediate area of the field and 30.7% in the short area of the field.

Developing his route tree will help open up some targets in the middle of the field for Odunze in the NFL. He loves a vertical route, and 10 of his 13 TDs in 2023 came on go routes or fades.

Fantasy Outlook

Odunze should expect to hear his name in the first round of the NFL draft, probably in the top 10. NFLMockDraftDatabase is currently projecting Odunze to be the third WR off the board, being drafted in the sixth spot. Odunze is being compared to players like Keenan Allen (as Kyle smiles), DeAndre Hopkins, and Larry Fitzgerald.

WRs drafted in the first round of the NFL draft usually do well in fantasy. In the last 20 years, 24 players averaged at least eight fantasy points per game in their first year in the NFL. These players seem to get even better with time and age as they gain NFL experience, increasing Odunze’s dynasty draft stock even more. 

Odunze has a high chance of going to a team where he has the opportunity to become the alpha immediately and can therefore be the cornerstone of your dynasty roster for seasons to come. He is used to competing with other talented receivers; last season in Washington, he shared the field with Ja’Lynn Polk and Jalen McMillan, who will also enter the draft this year. 

Odunze is the exact type of prospect you should be targeting in dynasty.