Welcome to Week 11 of the 2025 Footballguys Roundtable. Our intrepid panel of fantasy pundits discusses and debates four topics every week. We split the conversation into separate features.
This week's roundtable features these four topics:
- WR Rebound Candidates
- Can These WRs Keep It Going?
- Reserves with League-Altering Upside
- Controversial Stances
Let's roll...
Matt Waldman: These WRs had a worse month(ish) -- Weeks 6-10 -- than their current overall rankings.
- Emeka Egbuka WR10 overall, WR40 since Week 6
- Courtland Sutton WR17 overall, WR42 since Week 6
- Rome Odunze WR15 overall, WR30 since Week 6
Egbuka has only played four games, while the other two have played five, but the differential for Egbuka is stark enough for consideration. Pick the one most likely to rebound.
Jason Wood: They’re all solid options, and I wouldn’t worry at all if my playoff-hopeful fantasy roster relied on any of them in the starting lineup. Of the three, Sutton is the least compelling at the margins, given his age, Bo Nix’s inconsistency, and the emergence of Troy Franklin as Sutton’s equal, if not his superior.
As for the two younger receivers, both have already shown signs of rebounding. Odunze is coming off a 6-catch, 86-yard, 1-touchdown performance and had a 114-yard outing three weeks ago. Yes, he posted a zero in between, but that happens even to elite receivers; production in the NFL is rarely linear.
Egbuka, meanwhile, just delivered a 6-reception, 115-yard, 1-touchdown game and has clearly established himself as the Buccaneers’ best receiver despite being a rookie. With Mike Evans sidelined for most, if not all, of the season and Chris Godwin constantly battling injuries, there’s no reason to think Egbuka won’t continue as a high-volume, impact player.
If I’m breaking the tie between Egbuka and Odunze, I’ll lean toward Egbuka because Baker Mayfield is a slightly safer bet right now than Caleb Williams.
Meng Song: One could argue that Emeka Egbuka and Rome Odunze have both already rebounded in a big way in Week 10. I like both to continue producing rest-of-season, but I'll answer Odunze as the more undervalued rebound contender.
The two young receivers have both been extremely efficient, but their production was buoyed by high touchdown rates early in the season (five touchdowns in the first five games for Egbuka and five touchdowns over the first four games for Odunze).
Egbuka suffered through a hamstring injury from Weeks 6-8. Likewise, from Weeks 6 to 9, Odunze had two games in inclement weather where Chicago was playing with a lead.
Oduze also faced shadow coverage from a top-five cornerback in D.J. Turner in Week 9. In Week 10, a fully healthy Egbuka and Odunze, both playing from behind in the second half, rebounded with productive performances.
There are a few reasons I'd give a slight edge to Odunze continuing this rebound rest-of-season. There's a slightly elevated injury risk for Egbuka, as even mild hamstring injuries carry a fair chance to recur or lead to compensatory injuries.
The Bears' defense is currently top-five in points allowed per game, compared to an average-performing Buccaneers defense. It gives Odunze a slight edge in potential shootout game scripts over the second half of the year.
There's the unknown upside of Odunze in Ben Johnson's offensive scheme -- a ceiling that could be higher than most imagine. In 2022, Johnson's first season as Detroit's offensive coordinator, the Lions' defense was bottom-three in points allowed per game. That forced the offense into high-scoring matchups.
Detroit's offense that season averaged 17.8 PPG before their bye week and 30.3 PPG post-bye. It's possible that Chicago's offense could undergo a similar transformation over the second half of this season, and Odunze theoretically has a ceiling even higher than what we've seen from him thus far.