2024 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Rome Odunze

Prospect Summary:

With the arrival of Michael Penix Jr. at quarterback, Odunze broke out for the Huskies in 2022, catching 75 passes for 1,145 yards and seven touchdowns. That was a huge jump in production over 2021, when Odunze totaled 41 catches for 415 yards and four touchdowns. In 2023, Odunze was even better, making a ton of clutch plays to help lead the Huskies to the National Championship. He hauled in 92 catches for 1,640 yards and 13 touchdowns on the year.

There is no doubt that Odunze is a mismatch option and a problem in coverage. He is a tremendous back-shoulder receiver who is a superb weapon to work the sideline. Odunze uses his size to shield the ball from defenders and shows great concentration to make catches with cornerbacks battling him. Odunze is a phenomenal weapon to run fades and back-shoulder go routes down the sideline.

Immediately, Odunze’s size and ability to win contested catches jumps out. He is tall, long, lean, and has leaping ability to make contested catches over defensive backs. With a large catch radius, Odunze shows nice body control and the ability to adjust to high point the ball over corners to snatch passes for chunk completions. He makes catches in traffic routinely, showing zero hesitation or fear knowing that hits are coming. Odunze displays a natural ability to track the ball and has late hands to not tip off cornerbacks that the ball is about to arrive.

After the catch, Odunze is a nice contributor who utilizes his size to fight through tackles and pick up yards after contact. Odunze has good feel to know which way to break and cut after making a catch to give himself more space for yardage. He is tough and physical as a runner showing the ability to plow through defensive backs to get extra yardage. On wide receiver screens, Odunze is very capable to get upfield for good gains.

In the 2024 NFL Draft, Odunze could be a top-16 pick and won’t get out of the first round.