The Chicago Bears may have had their hand forced following the latest injury loss, undercutting the positive vibes coming off their thrilling win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9. With less than 24 hours to go before the trade deadline, the situation appears dire.
Moreover, there was a social media brouhaha over comments apparently made by one player’s father.
As if that was not enough, the Bears already had plenty of other factors to weigh before the trade deadline passes on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
Dayo Odeyingbo’s Season-Ending Injury Leads Bears News Roundup
Bears Lose Dayo Odeyingbo to Season-Ending Injury
The Bears got bad news to begin the work week, with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reporting on X on Monday that “Dayo Odeyingbo, a big-ticket signing in free agency, has torn his Achilles and is out for the season.”
The Bears signed Odeyingbo to a three-year, $48 million contract in free agency this past offseason.
He finishes his first season in Chicago with 21 total tackles, 1.0 sacks, and 1 pass breakup.
Bears head coach Ben Johnson confirmed the news of Odeyingbo’s injury and that they will “end up not having him for the rest of the season” on a conference call on Monday. For a Bears team tied for the eighth-fewest sacks in the league, it is a significant loss despite Odeyingbo’s stats.
“It’s one of those deals. It feels like we take some strides in particular positions, and we take some steps back. It’s wild. Felt like we had a solution there with Shemar [Turner] at defensive end a couple weeks ago, and then we lost him. And then, finally get [Austin] Booker back, and then we lose Dayo. So, it’s a little bit of give and take. That’s, of course, the NFL season. That happens,” Johnson told reporters on Monday.
“So, we’ll have guys step up. I thought Book did play a nice game yesterday. So, was very pleased to see that for his first game back. And so, no, I do have a lot of confidence there. Hopefully, we get Dom Robinson back, too, and he was doing some nice things there early in the season as well. We’ve got some depth.”
Rome Odunze’s Dad Sparks X Frenzy
Second-year Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze’s father, James Odunze, or at least an account pretending to be him, has a fairly consistent presence on social media, both in a personal and professional capacity. The former, particularly involving his Rome, included some attention-grabbing posts about the wideout’s usage and more.
The younger Odunze is the Bears’ leading receiver in targets, receptions, yards, and receiving touchdowns.
Odunze drew three targets against the Bengals, but did not catch any, sparking things.
The James Odunze account shared messages from fans who said his son should see double-digit targets per game, some from before the contest. The account shared another post, which clarified an attempt by a troll account to suggest friction between his son and Caleb Williams.
However, the account also sided with Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison in the latter’s criticism of his son’s situation with the Arizona Cardinals, particularly their offense.
Moreover, the account shared stats saying 37 of Odunze’s 59 targets (62.7%) have been catchable.
Notably, Odunze was born in Utah but grew up and attended high school in Nevada, where his father currently lives and the Las Vegas Raiders play. Fittingly, James Odunze posted and pinned a location emoji on his X profile, quoting a post urging the Bears to trade his son.
The Bears have faced speculation about trading DJ Moore, who had been in a situation that would have warranted a response closer to what the James Odunze account did.
There has been nothing to suggest the Bears have issues with Rome Odunze and vice versa.
Ben Johnson Gets Honest Before Trade Deadline
With Odeyingbo’s injury the latest in a laundry list that includes Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon, Johnson addressed is stance on the trade deadline. He is leaving most of the decision-making up to general manager Ryan Poles.
“You can never have too many pass rushers. You can never have too many cover players in the back end, either,” Johnson said. “That’s how I’ve always felt since I’ve been in this league. I know Ryan and his crew; they’ve been doing their due diligence all throughout the fall, all the way up until tomorrow, to make sure that we’re turning over every stone. To make sure that, if there’s a way we can improve this roster, we’ll do that.”
In the end, Johnson reiterated his faith in who the Bears already have in their building, but the sheer loss of healthy players and preexisting deficiencies could dictate that they make a move.