The Chicago Bears' 2024 rookie class entered the season with sky-high expectations, and for good reason. Led by first-overall pick Caleb Williams and ninth-overall pick Rome Odunze, fans anticipated explosive plays, highlight-reel touchdowns, and a serious push for the NFC North title.
Instead, Chicago ended the season 5-12, and the Williams to Odunze spicy combination was pretty bland.
As a result, NFL.com handed the Bears a disappointing grade for their 2024 draft class after evaluating every team’s rookies following their first season.
Chicago Bears 2024 NFL Draft class earns B- from NFL.com after first season
Let’s be honest: a B- grade and a middle-of-the-pack ranking (15th among all NFL teams) isn’t terrible. Many teams would be satisfied with that. But this Chicago Bears draft class was expected to be special, which is why the results feel so disappointing.
"When a team holds a pair of top-10 draft picks, a hype train forms," Gennaro Filice wrote. "And when that team spends those picks on a quarterback and a wide receiver, the hype train takes off. Then it’s on the rookies to keep up. Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze couldn’t manage that. Not that Williams and Odunze were abjectly bad in Year 1; they just failed to meet lofty expectations."
In a way, this might be a positive for the Bears' 2024 draft class, especially for Caleb Williams. Despite the lukewarm grade, he shattered Chicago Bears rookie passing records and set an NFL record for the most consecutive passes without an interception by a rookie.
Williams had a solid rookie season, but the fact that it’s being seen as a disappointment only sets the stage for improvement. With new head coach Ben Johnson now in his corner, the once-dubbed generational prospect is primed to reach his full potential.
Compare Williams to Jayden Daniels, who the league crowned as having the best rookie season of all time for a quarterback. No second-year player will face more pressure in 2025 than Daniels, who will need to be nearly flawless to maintain the sky-high expectations placed on him.
When it comes to Odunze, it’s almost laughable to compare his numbers to rookie receivers like Malik Nabers, Brian Thomas Jr., and Ladd McConkey. Unlike those first-year pass-catchers, who had little competition for targets, Odunze had to share the field with established stars like D.J. Moore and Keenan Allen.
The fact Odunze ended the year with nearly 750 yards is pretty remarkable.
Beyond Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze, the rest of the Bears' 2024 rookie class was mostly unremarkable, except for punter Tory Taylor. But let’s be real: no one is celebrating a draft class because of a punter.
Tackle Kiran Amegadjie struggled mightily during his brief stint as a starter, while edge rusher Austin Booker, despite his potential, was largely a non-factor in 2024.
As a result, a B- is fair. It's reasonable. It's an accurate grade based on the totality of the Chicago Bears' draft class.
But don’t get it twisted: Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze didn’t “disappoint.” They had solid rookie seasons that laid the groundwork for even bigger things ahead.
