Latest ‘1920 Football Drive’ shows Chicago Bears’ road to Rome Odunze

The new episode takes fans inside a tense Chicago Bears war room that eventually celebrated landing the team’s top two draft targets.

For months, Chicago Bears fans religiously mocked Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze to the team with the No. 1 and No. 9 overall picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, respectively.

The first part of that equation was easy. The Bears had eyes only for Williams with the top pick in the end, and no one could stop them from bringing the phenom to Chicago.

But the latest episode of “1920 Football Drive” showed the Bears weren’t 100 percent sure all roads would lead to Rome joining the franchise with the ninth pick.

In addition to showing behind-the-scenes footage of their draft meetings with Williams and Odunze, giving us a sneak peek into their positive impressions on the Bears, the new installment takes us inside the team’s war room following the Williams pick.

The tension in the suite is palpable as the front office, led by general manager Ryan Poles, awaits what the Los Angeles Chargers will do with the No. 5 pick and how it will affect their options at No. 9.

In particular, Poles’ fear of missing out on Odunze is apparent when the New York Giants go on the clock with the sixth pick, even solemnly stating his “gut” told him New York would take Odunze over fellow wide receiver Malik Nabers.

But the Giants rolled with Nabers instead, drawing a wide smile from Poles. Once the Tennessee Titans took Alabama tackle J.C. Latham at No. 7, the Bears listed their odds of taking Odunze at 77 percent.

The only remaining obstacle was the Atlanta Falcons, who stunned the football world (Poles included) by taking Michael Penix Jr. with the eighth overall pick.

From that point, the choice was academic.

Perhaps the most telling part that makes the excitement feel even more authentic was assistant general manager Ian Cunningham congratulating Poles on apparently getting the Bears’ No. 1 and No. 2-ranked prospects in the draft.

It’s not hard to imagine why Odunze won the Bears over so heavily. His on-field talent and potential are obvious, but his personality meshes with the Bears’ mold so well that they might as well have started fitting him for his jersey during the NFL Combine.

In short, the Bears had “the perfect day” to start the draft, and it was pretty fun to see it all unfold just the way Poles and the team hoped it would.

If the next 10-15 years follow a similar script, it might just be a perfect time to be Bears fans.