INDIANAPOLIS — When Caleb Williams threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Rome Odunze in the fourth quarter of the Bears’ 21-16 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, everyone had the same question.
Who will have possession of the ball?
After Odunze made the scoring shot, he and Williams celebrated with a choreographed celebration that saw the rookie point guard chase after his receiver and try to retrieve the trophy.
But it was all just a pretense: there was no debate about who had the ball.
“We’ll do it 50/50,” Odunze joked after the Bears loss. “He’ll do the right and I’ll do the left like a Twix factory. But no, I think he’s giving this one to me. He’s going to have a lot of wins in his career, more than I do, so he’s giving this first one to me.”
As for the celebration, the Bears’ top rookies were preparing in case NFL fate allowed them to put themselves on the NFL scoring record together.
“It was the first touchdown for both of us so we talked about making it a celebration,” Odunze said with a smile.
Sunday’s loss in Indianapolis was an early demoralizing moment for the 2024 Bears, but the improved chemistry between their two young stars is a ray of hope for them moving forward.
“I told Rome I’m going to give him the ball more,” Williams said. “I think the work that Rome and I have been doing over the last few weeks in practice and after practice has paid off, so we’re going to continue to do that. Obviously, we want to build that connection and have that trust and belief in each other.”
While Odunze was happy to see his name on the stat sheet, that’s not what the young Bears are chasing.
“Yeah, it’s always good to have that personal chemistry with him so I can be a big part of this offensive line,” Odunze said. “But when we’re not doing enough to win, it feels like something’s missing. But just playing that way together and building on that is going to be good for us throughout the season.”
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