Fantasy Alert: Bears' Caleb Williams, Rome Odunze Have 'Extremely Strong Connection'

Fantasy football players are watching the Chicago Bears very closely this summer, given the number of explosive weapons the team has put around Caleb Williams.

According to ESPN's Dan Graziano, the rookie quarterback has had some trouble against the blitz thus far, but is forming a strong connection with a number of those weapons:

"He and rookie wideout Rome Odunze looked like they have an extremely strong connection. Odunze made a couple of dazzling catches in two-minute drills, and he and Williams seemed to be together every time they walked on or off the field during the team portion of practice. Williams also found DJ Moore on a gorgeous deep ball for a touchdown on the first day I was there—an hour or so before Moore signed his big new contract extension. Tight end Cole Kmet is a reliable holdover as a strong option in the passing game, and the team hopes veteran Keenan Allen can be the kind of help and influence for Williams that he was for Justin Herbert in Herbert's rookie season with the Chargers."

Williams himself has acknowledged that getting better against the blitz is among his current goals.

"I would say working on my blitz and coverage looks and feeling the umbrella of the defense, and feeling that out to adjust protection; to adjust whether it's a run, flip the run into it, flip the protection, get to a quick gain, get to a cover-zero check, however the structure of it works out," he told reporters this week when asked where he wants to improve. "Just progressing, and a lot of that comes with seeing it and reps, and that's why also preseason, those things are so important."

From a fantasy perspective, it's always risky to pin too many hopes on a rookie quarterback, though C.J. Stroud's amazing 2023 season may embolden some managers to go all in on a player like Williams.

He would be the pick if you were to employ such a strategy. He's loaded with weapons, including running back D'Andre Swift, though the safer bet might be going after the receivers on this team, namely Allen and Moore.

Of course, the risk when a team has too many weapons is that the touches between all of them get diluted. Given the explosive talent this team has at receiver, it's more likely that Kmet's targets will suffer, though Odunze could end up being the third wheel among the wideouts, given that rookie receivers often—but certainly not always—take a few years to really develop from a fantasy perspective.

Regardless, this Bears offense has the potential to be explosive. Williams' development will determine just how explosive it is.