Who Should I Start? Xavier Worthy or Rome Odunze

Friday, August 1, 2:07 PM

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (head) was not diagnosed with a concussion and has been cleared by NFL and team doctors, according to Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. Worthy left practice on Tuesday with a head injury, but he appears to have avoided significant missed time. The second-year wide receiver is in line for a key role in Kansas City's offense, especially with fellow wideout Rashee Rice likely facing an early-season suspension. As a rookie in 2024, Worthy played all 17 games, racking up 742 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns. Chiefs coaches and quarterback Patrick Mahomes have been vocal about wanting to throw downfield more in 2025. That should benefit Worthy, whose speed is his greatest asset as a wide receiver.

Tuesday, July 29, 7:52 PM

Chicago Bears second-year wide receiver Rome Odunze has been the recipient of some of the offense's best plays so far in training camp, Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic writes, and his skill set will give new head coach Ben Johnson flexibility because of the way Odunze can win one-on-one matchups. "To me, he fits that prototypical 'X' receiver where you can line him up outside the numbers and, provided he gets a one-on-one with a corner, he's going to win most of his matchups, slant routes, stop routes, go routes, the whole route tree outside the numbers," Johnson said. The new head coach continues to praise the 23-year-old, which is why the Bears coaching staff is expecting a big Year 2 leap from Odunze. There will be stiff target competition in Chicago's offense, but with Keenan Allen now gone, Odunze should definitely have lots more upside as a WR3/flex in 2025.