Bears rank No. 1, 2 on ESPN’s best 2024 NFL Draft picks list

No matter where you look, the overwhelming consensus among those who specialize in NFL Draft analysis was that the Chicago Bears 2024 draft class was not just one of the best in the league, but also potentially a transformational haul for a franchise that couldn’t be more ready to usher in a new era of football. Thanks to a trade with the Carolina Panthers ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft that was so impressive that general manager Ryan Poles should retroactively be named 2023 Executive of the Year, the days where year after year the Bears trotted out one incompetent offense after another should now be a thing of the past.

At the forefront of this draft class were the two picks the Bears made within the top nine picks this past Thursday night. First, the selection of USC quarterback Caleb Williams, who had been waiting to be the 1st overall pick in the NFL Draft for well over a year. The second was Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze, who the Bears were badly hoping would still be on the board when they were once again on the clock again with the 9th overall pick.

Of all 257 picks that were made over the course of the weekend in Detroit, Michigan, Rome Odunze and Caleb Williams, in that order, were named by ESPN’s Matt Miller as the two best of the entire 2024 NFL Draft. Here is how Miller explained the methodology of his rankings:

“This isn’t just a list of the most talented players — we did that before the draft. Instead, we are incorporating a bit more into the equation than just what each prospect put on tape. As such, 41 picks from Day 3 made the list, but I didn’t have all of the top-10 selections in there. To create our ranking, we factored in value (where a player was drafted vs. where he was ranked pre-draft), scheme fit, how the selection addressed a need, what the prospect brings on the field and whether additional assets were gained or lost in draft-day trades to acquire him.”

So not only did the Bears get two of the most talented players in the Draft according to Matt Miller — Odunze and Williams were ranked 3rd and 1st respectively on that list — but factoring in everything else that could possibly be considered, they made the two most valuable picks in the entire draft.

The Picks

Matt Miller on Rome Odunze: “Not only was this a great value for Chicago — a difference of six spots in ranking vs. slot inside the top 10 is huge — but it’s also smart to help your rookie quarterback with a star rookie wide receiver. It also helps that Caleb Williams (said QB) and Odunze have been working out together since the 2023 college season ended. Odunze led the nation in receiving last season (1,640 yards) and fills out a potentially really good offense.”

Rome Odunze has #1 receiver potential, yet he’s walking into a situation where he’s probably the #3 option out of the gate because of the presence of a duo of established stars, DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. In time, Odunze will move up the pecking order, hopefully developing into one of the best wide receivers in the entire league. That, after all, is what the Bears saw in him.

Matt Miller on Caleb Williams: “Maybe it’s cheating to say the No. 1 overall pick in the draft ranks this high, but the Bears didn’t overthink this and landed a potential star at quarterback to turn things around. Plus, they’ve dedicated efforts throughout the process to building a system around Williams in which he can thrive. In a year with six quarterbacks selected in the top 12, the Bears didn’t have to move around the board and drafted the best passing prospect of the past decade.”

Matt Miller makes the point that not every draft expert seems to be making when discussing the Caleb Williams pick. The work that Ryan Poles and the Chicago Bears have done over the course of the last year — acquiring DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and D’Andre Swift, on top of facilitating a complete re-model of the offensive line — is why this pick has a chance to go down as a once in a generation sort of success. No rookie quarterback, let alone a 1st overall pick, has ever walked into a situation like this one. And y’all heard Caleb Williams… he sees “no reason to duck” the lofty expectations.

It should be noted, among the other three players the Bears selected during the 2024 NFL Draft, Chicago’s selection of Kansas edge rusher Austin Booker in the 5th Round was ranked by Miller the 41st-best pick of the draft. But in all reality, the Bears could’ve drafted me, my dog, and my girlfriend with their next three picks after Williams and Odunze, and it still would’ve been among the best draft classes in the league.