Who Should I Start? Rashod Bateman or Rome Odunze

Thursday, June 5, 12:03 PM

The Baltimore Ravens and wide receiver Rashod Bateman agreed to a three-year, $36.75 million contract extension on Thursday that includes $20 million guaranteed, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. It's the second straight year that Bateman and the Ravens agreed to an extension after the team gave him a two-year, $12.87 million deal that ran through 2026 last April. Baltimore is rewarding the 25-year-old former 27th overall pick again a year later after his most productive season as a pro in 2024 after he caught 45 of his 72 targets for 756 yards and nine touchdowns in 17 regular-season games (14 starts) in his fourth year in the NFL. It was a nice showing, but Bateman's fantasy ceiling remains rather low with Zay Flowers serving as the WR1 in a run-first offense. The Ravens also now have veteran DeAndre Hopkins, which means Bateman will likely be a boom/bust fantasy commodity.

Friday, June 6, 8:19 PM

Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze believes he's going to take a major step forward in his second professional season. Odunze had high expectations after being drafted as the No. 9 overall pick during last year's draft. He finished with 54 receptions, 734 yards, and three touchdowns across 17 games last season. To be fair, nothing seemed to go right for the Bears offense last season. They tried to get Odunze involved with over 100 targets, but the poor play of the offensive line made it difficult for them. Despite that, the Bears believe Odunze is a special player that can take a big leap this next season. Odunze said his goal is to get at least 1,000 receiving yards and double-digit touchdowns. The Bears have added talent on offense, so we'll see if that goal is achievable, but regardless fantasy managers should probably hold Odunze and see what happens.