Lumen Field was rocking, but it couldn’t stop our Seahawks from taking a brutal 34-17 loss to the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football. Yeah, that score stings, and what we saw on film from the other side of the ball should make us all sit up and pay attention, especially when it comes to a guy like Rome Odunze, who had a wild game *without* hitting the end zone.
Rome Odunze Is Quietly Torching Defenses, Even Ours
Against our boys, Rome Odunze was a problem, snagging 4 catches for 87 yards on an 18% target share. Now, that’s decent for a WR3/4, but here’s the kicker: this dude is straight up *missing* touchdowns. It’s wild. He’s ranked WR3 in 15+ yard receptions with 19 of ’em, trailing only our own Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Tee Higgins. Think about that, folks. Nineteen explosive plays, and of the 19 receivers with at least 11 explosive receptions, Odunze is the *only one* without a single touchdown to show for it. That’s almost impossible to do! It means a huge positive regression is coming, and frankly, our defense might’ve just caught him on a lucky night. Caleb Williams even missed him on a double-move go ball that would’ve been a 50+ yard touchdown right before halftime. Plus, Odunze’s had some inexcusable drops that should have been scores. This stuff has to even out, and when it does, he’s going to be a nightmare. We saw glimpses of his skill, like a 12-personnel dig route on play action where he created separation with a fake, and a scramble drill explosive, which is pure Williams magic.
Ben Johnson Cooked Up Some Tricks We Couldn’t Handle
It wasn’t just Odunze’s raw talent. That Bears offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson, brought some serious heat with his play designs. He pulled off this “trick play” that was surprisingly easy to execute but completely bamboozled our defense. When D’Andre Swift flips the ball to Caleb Williams, their entire defensive line just stops rushing the passer like normal. That gives Williams all the time in the world to make a throw. Then, our second-level zone defenders bit hard, eyeing Swift in the flats more than usual, which left a giant window for Odunze to run his dig route right into. This wasn’t some high-risk, low-reward garbage. This was a smart, low-risk play that our guys just weren’t ready for, and it created a huge opening. You gotta wonder why our defense looked so lost out there on a play that, on film, looks pretty simple to execute but just as simple to defend if you’re expecting it.
Burden’s Splits and What It Means When Teams Pull Away
And it wasn’t just Odunze we saw. Another Bears receiver, Luther Burden III, showed some wild splits in that game, and it tells a story about what happens when teams get a lead against us. When the Bears established their lead, they pretty much abandoned their 3-WR sets, which really messed with Burden’s production. He’s a WR3 in yards per route in the first half but drops to a WR61 in the second half. This tells us that when teams get up on us, they can dictate the terms of engagement and take away certain offensive looks. It’s a clear signal that our Hawks need to do a better job of not letting opponents get comfortable and run away with the game.
Our Hawks have to tighten things up, plain and simple. Letting teams establish leads and then getting picked apart by trick plays or letting guys like Odunze roam free without a TD to show for it (yet) is a tough pill to swallow. We gotta figure out how to shut down these emerging weapons early and finish games strong. We know what our guys like Jaxon Smith-Njigba are capable of, and we need to see that consistent, elite play from the whole squad moving forward.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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