Odunze or Nabers?

[IotaNet]

Here’s a question for the armchair GMs.

Barring a big surprise, it’s a pretty foregone conclusion that MHJ will be gone by the time we make our second pick. That leaves either Rome Odunze or Malik Nabers. Depending on who you read, they're pretty evenly matched but are different kinds of players.

With that said, here’s my question:

Which of the two of them is the better compliment to DJ Moore?

[The Marshall Plan]

It's my understanding that Nabers is basically a Moore clone (not a bad thing mind you) and he's 6'0".

Odunze is taller at 6'3".

I like the idea of the taller receiver because it's a compliment to Moore.

I would be elated with either one.

[cblaz11]

So many receivers that have been drafted high bust out because that’s all they have, size. Rome is a solid WR, but as a top 10 pick, I don’t see it.

Nabors will compete with MHJ as the best WR in this draft…personally, I’m taking him over MHJ.

Watch the tape…he’s running in another gear then everyone around him. The hands, the route running, the separation, the clutch factor…guys the real deal.

Lots of people are gonna look back on their Rome love with regret..

[Rusty Trombagent]

Rome all day and twice on Sunday. I get that cblaz has never watched actual football before and I forgive him his transgressions. He is a Bears fan after all, so it's a foregone conclusion that he knows next to nothing about the game.

[Atkins&Rebel]

Nabers

[Moriarty]

Hard to say since Nabers ducked Combine.

But, either way, I have no interest in spending super scarce resource on either luxury.

[Grizzled]

Odunze and MHJ are the big guys to complement Moore, who can be X or slot. Nabers is an X. He's so explosive, a YAC beast. I doubt the Bears will get a chance to pick between him and Odunze, they'll be lucky if either is there at 9.

[RichH55]

Nabers for me

[IotaNet]

Odunze and MHJ are the big guys to complement Moore, who can be X or slot. Nabers is an X. He's so explosive, a YAC beast. I doubt the Bears will get a chance to pick between him and Odunze, they'll be lucky if either is there at 9.

This is kinda what I was thinking. I remember years ago, when we had Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey, the complaint was that we had two of the same guy in them.

[wab]

I like Odunze, but there are other guys in the draft I like too. Brian Thomas, Adonai Mitchell, Javon Baker, Ja'Lynn Polk, Jermaine Burton...

[alexwilkins]

I love the fit with Odunze 100% but I’m tempted to lean Malik because LSU has been WRU for the last decade AND they send them out in pairs. Odell/Jarvis Landry. Ja’Marr Chase/JJettas. Nabers and Thomas Jr. could be the next great duo.

[Grizzled]

I love the fit with Odunze 100% but I’m tempted to lean Malik because LSU has been WRU for the last decade AND they send them out in pairs. Odell/Jarvis Landry. Ja’Marr Chase/JJettas. Nabers and Thomas Jr. could be the next great duo.

Nabers and Daniels ....

[Grizzled]

Odunze and MHJ are the big guys to complement Moore, who can be X or slot. Nabers is an X. He's so explosive, a YAC beast. I doubt the Bears will get a chance to pick between him and Odunze, they'll be lucky if either is there at 9.

This is kinda what I was thinking. I remember years ago, when we had Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey, the complaint was that we had two of the same guy in them.

Moore in the slot and Nabers in the X, though, could be lethal.

[LacertineForest]

This is kinda what I was thinking. I remember years ago, when we had Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey, the complaint was that we had two of the same guy in them.

Moore in the slot and Nabers in the slot, though, could be lethal.

Put everyone in the slot!

[Grizzled]

Moore in the slot and Nabers in the slot, though, could be lethal.

Put everyone in the slot!

Fixed. Enjoyable way to see my fat fingering.

[bearsoldier]

Odunze over Nabers but would not be upset with having either as a top pick. Depending on our pick after the trade down from #1, my preference is MHJ or Joe Alt.

[Ditka’s dictaphone]

I like Odunze, but there are other guys in the draft I like too. Brian Thomas, Adonai Mitchell, Javon Baker, Ja'Lynn Polk, Jermaine Burton...

For me it’s MHJ in the first or take a WR with a later pick.

There are a lot of good receivers in this draft

[thunderspirit]

I heard recently, from a source I trust, that some NFL teams may have "concerns" about Nabers off the field.

It was a single comment and it wasn't elaborated upon. Further, a dive into Google didn't reveal anything. But this wasn't some random Twitter dude trolling for clicks, either.

[Heinz D.]

I think both will have solid careers. Odunze is more well-rounded, Nabers is Tyreke Hiil like.

[Yogi da Bear]

It's my understanding that Nabers is basically a Moore clone (not a bad thing mind you) and he's 6'0".

Odunze is taller at 6'3".

I like the idea of the taller receiver because it's a compliment to Moore.

I would be elated with either one.

Truthfully, I'm not sure that I don't like Nabers' teammate, Brian Thomas Jr. more than either of them, particularly for the Bears' purposes. At 6'3", 209, he's got the size that Nabers doesn't have and with a 4.33 40 he's got speed that either one of them can only dream of. I'd like to see him fill out a bit more and get stronger, but damn, those are some pretty good specs on him.

Adonai Mitchell out of Texas is another guy I really at 6'2" and 4.34 speed.

[Grizzled]

It's my understanding that Nabers is basically a Moore clone (not a bad thing mind you) and he's 6'0".

Odunze is taller at 6'3".

I like the idea of the taller receiver because it's a compliment to Moore.

I would be elated with either one.

Truthfully, I'm not sure that I don't like Nabers' teammate, Brian Thomas Jr. more than either of them, particularly for the Bears' purposes. At 6'3", 209, he's got the size that Nabers doesn't have and with a 4.33 40 he's got speed that either one of them can only dream of. I'd like to see him fill out a bit more and get stronger, but damn, those are some pretty good specs on him.

Adonai Mitchell out of Texas is another guy I really at 6'2" and 4.34 speed.

Odunze turned in a 4.45 40 and hit it out of the park with other measureables including RAS. Nabers didn' runat the Combine; I'm assuming he'll do it at LSU's pro day. Odunze has turned in back to back seasons of good in '22 and great in '23. Thomas and Coleman have really good '23s but not much prior.

[The Marshall Plan]

It's my understanding that Nabers is basically a Moore clone (not a bad thing mind you) and he's 6'0".

Odunze is taller at 6'3".

I like the idea of the taller receiver because it's a compliment to Moore.

I would be elated with either one.

Truthfully, I'm not sure that I don't like Nabers' teammate, Brian Thomas Jr. more than either of them, particularly for the Bears' purposes. At 6'3", 209, he's got the size that Nabers doesn't have and with a 4.33 40 he's got speed that either one of them can only dream of. I'd like to see him fill out a bit more and get stronger, but damn, those are some pretty good specs on him.

Adonai Mitchell out of Texas is another guy I really at 6'2" and 4.34 speed.

What worries me about drafting teammates of highly touted prospects is how much did that guy benefit from playing alongside that elite prospect?

[Grizzled]

Truthfully, I'm not sure that I don't like Nabers' teammate, Brian Thomas Jr. more than either of them, particularly for the Bears' purposes. At 6'3", 209, he's got the size that Nabers doesn't have and with a 4.33 40 he's got speed that either one of them can only dream of. I'd like to see him fill out a bit more and get stronger, but damn, those are some pretty good specs on him.

Adonai Mitchell out of Texas is another guy I really at 6'2" and 4.34 speed.

What worries me about drafting teammates of highly touted prospects is how much did that guy benefit from playing alongside that elite prospect?

Well, if he was picked (although I believe #9 is a bit high for him), he'd be playing alongside D.J., who is elite.

[thunderspirit]

Truthfully, I'm not sure that I don't like Nabers' teammate, Brian Thomas Jr. more than either of them, particularly for the Bears' purposes. At 6'3", 209, he's got the size that Nabers doesn't have and with a 4.33 40 he's got speed that either one of them can only dream of. I'd like to see him fill out a bit more and get stronger, but damn, those are some pretty good specs on him.

Adonai Mitchell out of Texas is another guy I really at 6'2" and 4.34 speed.

What worries me about drafting teammates of highly touted prospects is how much did that guy benefit from playing alongside that elite prospect?

As a general rule, this isn't a huge contributor to how a draft prospect pans out.

One of the stats I use when looking at prospects (and on offense at RB in particular, but also TE and WR) is how much of their team's yards they contributed. It's not perfect, because the physical ability and skill matters too, but I find this addresses both durability — they obviously don't contribute when missing games — and productivity. It also helps put their raw stats into context; getting a 1000 yds receiving should be viewed differently on an offense like LSU's than in would be on an offense like, say, Central Florida's, which passed for 1100 fewer yds on the season.

Thomas Jr hauled in 26.7% of LSU's passing yds last season (1177 of 4406). Nabers got a ridiculous 35.6% (1569 of 4406) after 27.0% (1017 of 3770) in the 2022 season. By comparison, Thomas Jr's 2022 was 9.6% (361 of 3770) which is no small part of why Nabers can be viewed as a better prospect and why Thomas Jr can be viewed as a one-hit wonder. Thomas Jr's build is much more enticing than Nabers, and he demonstrated his speed at the Combine.

Like Nabers and Thomas Jr, Xavier Worthy and AD Mitchell were the top two receivers at Texas. Worthy had three years of production — 25.1% (1014 of 4047) in 2023, 24.2% (760 of 3138) in 2022, and a tremendous 36.3% (981 of 2705) as a true freshman in 2021. Mitchell took in 20.9% of Texas' passing yards last season (845 of 4047) while not doing much of anything in Georgia's passing game the two years prior (134 of 4438 for 3.0% in 2022, 426 of 3778 for 11.3%, as a true freshman, in 2021). Worthy is obviously not the physical specimen Mitchell is, so that has to factor into the evaluation.

For additional context, Ja'Tavion Sanders grabbed 16.9% (682 of 4047) in 2023 and 19.5% (613 of 3138) in 2022, which is an excellent production for a tight end.

[IotaNet]

Moore in the slot and Nabers in the X, though, could be lethal.

In the slot, you say? (I fully accept that the young 'uns in here don't know anything about TOP but that's OK. )

[Grizzled]

Moore in the slot and Nabers in the X, though, could be lethal.

In the slot, you say? (I fully accept that the young 'uns in here don't know anything about TOP but that's OK. )

Saw them years ago. Pretty danged good, to put it mildly.

[Rusty Trombagent]

I want to mention too that I also love Keon Coleman. I definitely have a type, and it's "dudes who arent super fast who have to make up for it by being good football players."

Sincerely, probably the last guy who was defending Allen Robinson around here.

[cblaz11]

Rome all day and twice on Sunday. I get that cblaz has never watched actual football before and I forgive him his transgressions. He is a Bears fan after all, so it's a foregone conclusion that he knows next to nothing about the game.

People are starting to put Nabors over MHJ…

See what happens when you watch 3 minute highlight tapes on a player and think you scouted him ..you look like a fool!

[Rusty Trombagent]

Rome all day and twice on Sunday. I get that cblaz has never watched actual football before and I forgive him his transgressions. He is a Bears fan after all, so it's a foregone conclusion that he knows next to nothing about the game.

People are starting to put Nabors over MHJ…

See what happens when you watch 3 minute highlight tapes on a player and think you scouted him ..you look like a fool!

Yeah I'm sorry, I only made it through about 2 minutes before getting back on tik tok.

[UOK]

Rome all day and twice on Sunday. I get that cblaz has never watched actual football before and I forgive him his transgressions. He is a Bears fan after all, so it's a foregone conclusion that he knows next to nothing about the game.

I must have missed this.

Is this friendly ball-breaking or an earnest attempt at being a douchebag?