NFL Draft Scout Trusts Rome Odunze More Than Marvin Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers

Washington's Rome Odunze is considered the third-best wide receiver in the 2024 NFL draft on many draft boards, but at least one NFL scout considers him a safer pick at wideout than Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. and LSU's Malik Nabers.

Speaking to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, an anonymous scout said the following about Odunze's pro prospects compared to Harrison and Nabers:

"Rome is the safest guy of the receivers. He's just not as talented as Malik or Harrison as far as getting consistent separation at an NFL level. I trust him a little more than those guys. As far as strength through the catch, he might be the best. He's built right to last and run routes."

Odunze burst onto the scene in 2022 with 75 receptions for 1,145 yards and seven touchdowns as a favorite target for quarterback Michael Penix Jr. at the University of Washington, but he was even better last season.

Sharing the field with two other receivers who have a chance to come off the board by the end of Day 2 of the draft in Ja'Lynn Polk and Jalen McMillan, Odunze was the go-to guy for Penix.

He finished with 92 catches for 1,640 yards and 13 touchdowns, and was a big reason why the Huskies reached the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

In addition to his production, Odunze measured 6'3" and weighed in at 212 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine, plus he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds, which was highly impressive given his size.

Odunze possesses one of the best size-speed combos in the draft, plus it can be argued that no wide receiver prospect is better when it comes to making contested catches down the field.

Most mock drafts across the industry have had Harrison going to the Arizona Cardinals at No. 4 overall, followed by Nabers with one of the next few picks and then Odunze as the third receiver off the board somewhere in the top 10.

While the draft could potentially play out that way, it is far from a given since every team is looking for a different skill set at wide receiver.

On its latest big board, the BR NFL Scouting Department ranked Odunze as the No. 6 overall player in the draft and the No. 2 wide receiver behind Harrison, but ahead of Nabers.

Also, in its latest mock draft, the BR NFL Scouting Department had Odunze going fifth overall to the Los Angeles Chargers, behind Harrison at No. 4 and ahead of Nabers at No. 6.