Chicago Bears star wide receiver Rome Odunze isn’t planning on letting his new heel injury stop him from playing against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 9.
Odunze popped up on the Bears’ injury report at the start of the week with a heel injury, sitting out of Wednesday’s first practice for the Bengals and amplifying concerns about the availability of Chicago’s banged-up receiving corps heading into Sunday’s game.
The Bears were also without DJ Moore (hip/groin), Olamide Zaccheaus (knee) and second-round rookie Luther Burden III (concussion) during Wednesday’s practice, leaving them with Devin Duvernay and Jahdae Walker as their top wide receivers.
After returning as a limited participant for Thursday’s practice, though, Odunze told reporters that his heel injury is something that he has been dealing with for a while now and that he expects to suit up for the Bears in Sunday’s game against the Bengals.
“Rome Odunze said that his heel injury has been a ‘progressive thing’ he’s dealt with throughout the season and the Baltimore game was where it was at its peak,” ESPN’s Courtney Cronin wrote Thursday on X. “He was limited today and said he’ll be [good] to go in Cincinnati.”
Rome Odunze Has Emerged as Bears’ Top WR in 2025
The Bears will be glad to have Odunze available against the Bengals on Sunday, given what he has meant to their offense through the first eight weeks of the 2025 season.
Odunze has emerged as the Bears’ most productive wide receiver in every major aspect through the first seven games, leading them in receptions (31), receiving yards (473), receiving touchdowns (five) and targets (56). He is also coming off his second 100-yard game of the year, hauling in seven passes for 114 yards in Week 8’s loss to the Ravens.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams has certainly honed in on Odunze as his go-to guy downfield. According to Next Gen Stats, Odunze accounts for 43.82% of the Bears’ air yards on the season, ranking second in the league behind only Seattle Seahawks star Jaxon Smith-Njigba (48.98%). He also rates eighth in average targeted air yards (14.1).
At this rate, Oduzne will blow right past the 734 receiving yards he posted as a rookie and finish the year with double-digit touchdowns. That’s breakout territory right there.
DJ Moore & Olamide Zaccheaus Also Return to Practice
Odunze was not the only Bears wide receiver who improved his participation at Thursday’s practice. Moore and Zaccheaus also returned as limited participants after each sitting out Wednesday’s session, a good sign for Chicago’s health at the position.
Unfortunately, Burden was a non-participant for a second consecutive practice as he continues to work through the concussion that knocked him out of Week 8’s loss to the Ravens. He will have one more practice to work through the five steps of the league’s concussion protocol, though the Bears could take the weekend to properly clear him.
Elsewhere on the injury report, the Bears saw more improvement. Cornerback Tyrique Stevenson upgraded from “limited” to “full” for Thursday’s practice, while veteran tight end Cole Kmet logged a second straight day as a limited participant due to a back issue.
The Bears did not have defensive end Dominique Robinson (ankle) or running backs D’Andre Swift (groin) and Roschon Johnson (back) for the second straight practice.
The Bears (4-3) will kick off against the Bengals (3-5) at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.
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