We are proud to be among the first, if not the first, to publish full projections for the upcoming season, going live just days after the Super Bowl. Publishing detailed projections in early February comes with trade-offs, not the least of which is a near-total lack of clarity on how free agency, cap transactions, and the NFL draft will reshape rosters.
We've been updating our projections in near real time, including during the recent onslaught of free-agent transactions. This version will remain largely stable until we can layer in the April NFL draft, but stable projections don't mean settled debates.
We have a staff of sharp analysts with sharp takes of their own, so I thought it would be worthwhile to solicit their views on the key coin-toss situations that will shape each team's outlook in the coming months. These are important questions where reasonable, informed people can credibly land in very different places. I asked my colleagues to weigh in with one assumption: they were answering strictly through the lens of a standard 0.5-PPR redraft league.
Chicago Bears Coin-Toss Questions
- Is Williams' Inaccuracy a Warning Sign for His Fantasy Outlook?
- How Will Swift and Monangai Split Touches This Season?
- Should Loveland Be the Third TE Off the Board in Your Draft?
- Odunze or Burden: Who Should Be Picked First This Year?
Who do you rank higher: Rome Odunze or Luther Burden III? Why?
Sigmund Bloom: If I had to take one, it would be Burden, simply because we haven't seen his ceiling yet, and we have a pretty good idea who Odunze is now. The real answer is neither, because Odunze, Burden, and Loveland are all going within ten picks of each other on average in early Underdog drafts, and Loveland is the easy pick of the three if their price is close. The production of all three should be somewhat similar, but those points are worth a lot more at tight end than they are at wide receiver.
Maurile Tremblay: I'd rank Odunze slightly higher than Burden. With DJ Moore traded to Buffalo and Olamide Zaccheaus departing for Atlanta, the target tree has been significantly pruned. Odunze has both the higher draft pedigree and the more established NFL production, and seems well-positioned to solidify his lead in targets among the receivers after Moore's departure. We haven't seen Burden's ceiling yet. Burden could make a huge second-year leap, but that's purely a bet on potential.
Meng Song: It's Rome Odunze for me. Lest we forget, Odunze played through a stress fracture in his foot for the majority of last season. Although he didn't technically miss time until Week 14, the first report of Odunze's injury, initially classified as a heel injury, was in late October after Week 8. While not confirmed, it's likely that the stress fracture was already affecting him from Weeks 9 to 13 before the Bears finally shut him down for a few weeks. I like Luther Burden III as well in a full-time role with D.J. Moore gone, but let's not ignore that Odunze was the No. 11 wide receiver in 0.5 PPR points per game from Weeks 1 to 8 prior to injury. I will gladly draft him as a top-15 wide receiver heading into 2026 and may end up with him on 100% of my rosters if the consensus ranks Odunze outside of the top 20 wide receivers.
Andy Hicks: This is a tougher question than it should be. The positive for both is the departure of DJ Moore to Buffalo. On paper, Rome Odunze should step into the WR1 role; he'd already claimed it before Week 10 last season, until a foot injury knocked him off course. That's when Burden stepped up from only 13 catches in the first nine weeks to a starting fantasy receiver from Week 10 onward. Has Burden stolen the No. 1 role, or will Odunze resume from pre-injury? Ultimately, I have to respect draft pedigree. Odunze was a No. 9 overall pick and has one more year of experience. I won't be terribly disappointed if I end up with Burden, though. I would have both in my top 24 fantasy receivers this year.
Jeff Haseley: I rank Rome Odunze higher. Burden is the shiny toy with DJ Moore now in Buffalo, but Odunze has already established a niche in the offense, especially with Caleb Williams, and he has the physical profile of a true No. 1 receiver. Burden is more of a yards-after-the-catch specialist, whereas Odunze is the guy Williams trusts on third down and in the red zone.
