LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Rome Odunze was asked if he expects to make a leap in his second NFL season. The Bears receiver’s answer was straight and to the point.

“Yep,” he said. “Absolutely.”

Here’s the catch: Odunze believes the leap has already been made. Y’all just haven’t seen it yet.

“I’ve got a year of work — an NFL season under my belt,” Odunze said. “I improved on everything when it comes to wide receiver play. I feel like I made a jump. So (I’ve) just got to go out there and put it on display.”

Monday night’s season opener against the Minnesota Vikings is the first opportunity to do so. Odunze’s been in the lab for months, working to increase lean mass and the physicality required to routinely make tough, contested catches. He has been drilling the details of head coach Ben Johnson’s offensive scheme to best execute his routes on time and in sync with quarterback Caleb Williams.

Odunze’s improvements were evident during an excellent training camp where he caught most everything in his vicinity and was a go-to guy in big moments. There’s also an air of confidence about Odunze — maybe even a swagger to him that wasn’t there a year ago.

Despite being a top 10 NFL draft pick, Odunze was at times deferential to proven veterans DJ Moore and Keenan Allen. Odunze is working to be the guy, even on a team with so many dynamic skill players.

Johnson considers Odunze a “prototypical ‘X’ receiver,” someone who can thrive outside the numbers and generate explosive plays. He’s also the type to make important catches on third and manageable and haul in red-zone passes in traffic.

The offense was a work-in-progress most of the summer, with Williams and others struggling at times to complete pre-snap responsibilities and execute well on a consistent basis. There is a widespread belief that the Bears will be significantly better this season, but Odunze didn’t shy away from that pressure. He welcomes it.

“That’s definitely the expectation that has been set,” Odunze said. “There’s pressure on the organization as a whole, but pressure creates diamonds. That’s our belief. It’s a privilege to have that pressure. We take that and we understand what’s required. We all have to do our jobs to play great as an offense and as a team.”

Dealing with J.J.

The Bears will face a quarterback making his first NFL start on Monday night. The Vikings took J.J. McCarthy with last year’s No. 10 overall selection, but a preseason knee injury kept him out the entire 2024 campaign.

Catching a signal caller’s first outing can be a benefit, but there’s an element of unknown without much tape on him as a Viking.

“We obviously studied him coming out (of college),” defensive coordinator Dennis Allen said in a Friday press conference. “We got a chance to see him in a couple of preseason games. And yet, we don’t have a lot of film on him, so we’ll have to be ready to adjust and see how they’re trying to call the game with him.”

Allen cautioned against the assumption that McCarthy will be more susceptible to mistakes that the Bears’ defense can exploit. He was excellent during his University of Michigan career, leading the Wolverines to a national championship, and reports out of Minnesota suggest he has had a strong camp with some expected rookie moments.

While the Bears expect to force some turnovers, Allen believes McCarthy will provide a tough test.

“This is an NFL quarterback,” Allen said. “He’s here for a reason and so we respect him, we respect his talents, we respect the team that we’re facing. But each week that’s part of what we do, we’re hunting the football. The No. 1 reason and really the only reason why you take the field on defense is to get the ball back for the offense and so whether that’s forcing punts, whether that’s taking the ball away, that’s what our job is, and so that’s where our focus is.”

Practice report

Linebacker T.J. Edwards missed his second practice of the week, dealing with a hamstring injury suffered on Aug. 26. He has not practiced since that date, creating high odds Edwards could miss Monday night’s game against the Vikings. Noah Sewell would likely step in for Edwards, possibly moving between middle linebacker and strongside linebacker, depending on the defensive personnel package. Ruben Hyppolite II should also see increased snaps in that scenario.

The Bears also reported that running back Roschon Johnson (foot) did not participate in Thursday’s practice.  He has been out for weeks.

Jaylon Johnson was limited for a second straight day, keeping his availability for Monday night in serious doubt. He’s returning from a prolonged absence (groin/calf) and might not be in the football shape required to play an NFL game.

Defensive back Josh Blackwell (groin) and running back Kyle Monangai (hamstring) were also limited.