DJ Moore vs. Rome Odunze: Former Teammates, Now Their Teams' WR1?

This one just makes sense.

Because of the young talent they have on offense, the Chicago Bears felt comfortable moving on from veteran WR DJ Moore this offseason. Rome Odunze, meanwhile, is part of that young talent that will take on a larger role with Moore now in Buffalo. So which wideout should you target in your fantasy football drafts? The fantasy football rankings have them within three spots from each other among WRs.

Let’s break it down.

Who Should You Draft in Fantasy Football 2026, DJ Moore or Rome Odunze?

The Case to Draft DJ Moore

Josh Allen throwing passes. Joe Brady calling plays.

DJ Moore should fit right at home in Buffalo.

Look, there is no sugarcoating it. Moore’s 2025 campaign was simply not good. In fact, it was the worst season of his career, posting personal lows in receptions (50), receiving yards (682), targets per game (5.0) and TPRR (15.7%). His advanced metrics were poor, ranking 88th among 170 qualified receivers in yards per route run (1.23) and 74th in first downs per route run (0.059).

I know, I know. I’m making quite the compelling argument for Buffalo’s new WR1.

But Moore’s new home offers reason for hope for a bounceback 2026. For starters, getting to catch passes from arguably the league’s best quarterback helps. Caleb Williams was a lot of fun last year, and is very likely to become a star. But he struggled with consistent accuracy, as Pro Football Reference charted 20.7% of his passes as “bad throws.” Only Michael Penix and J.J. McCarthy were worse. And when watching the Bears last season, there were a handful of times where Moore and Williams simply weren’t on the same page. Individually, nearly 17% of Moore’s total targets were deemed inaccurate.

• Check out Matthew Berry’s Draft Day Manifesto

We’ve seen plenty of wideouts be more than fantasy relevant alongside Allen over the years. And while the Stefon Diggs years were awesome, I’m really not even considering them when projecting Moore in Buffalo. Why?

Because DJ Moore is not Stefon Diggs.

Diggs was 27 when he joined the Bills and simply a better player than Moore (29) is now. Instead, I think a very overlooked, reasonable expectation could be something along the lines of what John Brown did during his first season in Buffalo back in 2019. And I know the thought of that may not excite you, but don’t forget what Smoke was doing alongside Allen. During that season, Brown hauled in 72-of-115 targets for 1,060 yards and 6 touchdowns, good for a WR23 finish in fantasy. Of course, if Moore can get back to his 2023 form, there is certainly a ceiling higher than that.

Reuniting with a familiar face might help him reach that ceiling.

Brady has been calling plays for the Bills since the middle of the 2023 season, and although he has more responsibilities now as head coach, his playcalling duties aren't going anywhere. That could bode well for Moore, who had two of his most productive seasons with Brady as the OC in Carolina from 2020-21:

• 2020: 66 catches, 118 targets, 1,193 yards, 4 TDs
• 2021: 93 catches, 163 targets, 1,157 yards, 4 TDs

The spike in volume in the 2021 campaign had a lot to do with Christian McCaffrey playing only seven games, while the receivers behind Moore in Carolina were Robbie Chosen, Terrace Marshall Jr. and Brandon Zylstra. During those two seasons, Moore ran go routes 24% of the time, but ranked 46th among receivers in screen targets in that stretch (21).

This current iteration of Brady’s Buffalo offense features a lot more designed touches for their best YAC players. Screens, motions, orbit motions are all going to be designed for Khalil Shakir, but Moore as well. Since the 2023 season, no team in football has called receiver screens at a higher rate than the Bills (6.6%). Part of that is due to the Bills missing a true difference-making separator on the outside, but it’s also something they’ve grown fond of under Brady.

Even with Allen at the helm, the Bills have transformed into a run-first offense under Brady. Over the past three seasons, Buffalo ranks third in neutral script rush rate (47.2%), trailing only the Eagles and Ravens. During that span, Allen ranks 16th in pass attempts per game (29.8). There has been some speculation that now that he’s also the head coach, Brady might open up the offense a bit and air it out more, which can only benefit Moore.

• Check out Matthew Berry’s Rankings

The Case for Rome Odunze

If you only look at what Odunze did to kick off the 2025 season, this wouldn’t even be close.

From Weeks 1-8, Odunze was dominant, sporting a 23% TPRR and 26% target share. During that span, Odunze averaged 15.5 PPR PPG, good for 10th among qualified wide receivers. Odunze found the end zone five times during the first eight games, while accounting for 42% of Chicago’s end-zone targets, the eighth-highest rate in football. The usage and production were all looking great, and Odunze appeared to be on track for a breakout season.

Then he hurt his foot.

Starting in Week 9, Odunze was playing through a stress fracture in his foot, which he ultimately aggravated in Week 13 to the point that it ended his regular season. There’s no doubt that Odunze was not 100% healthy before being shut down. From Weeks 9-13, Odunze ranked 81st in yards per route run (1.10), while averaging just 6.8 targets, 2.6 receptions, 37.6 yards and 7.6 PPR PPG. His usage changed during that stretch, too, which coincided with his own injury and the emergence of Luther Burden.

• Weeks 1-8: 16% in routes, 12.2% go routes
• Weeks 9-13: 11.1% in routes, 21.1% go routes

It’s possible that Odunze’s foot injury forced him to run less in-breaking routes, though it is also possible Ben Johnson simply wanted him to clear space underneath for Burden, Moore and Colston Loveland. Or his injury simply made it easier for the Bears to deploy him on less-demanding routes. But from that point on, most of the designed/schemed looks in this offense went to Burden and Loveland.

Odunze was seeing a lot of the downfield usage, averaging over 100 air yards per game, but Williams completed just 39% of his deep passes. As a result, Odunze’s overall catchable target rate was just 59% (12th-lowest among WRs with at least 150 routes). Meanwhile, Odunze actually led the NFL in targets deemed inaccurate during his active weeks (21). I’d like to believe Williams takes a massive step forward with his accuracy this season. There’s also clearly touchdown upside here, especially with Chicago’s offense continuing to ascend. Odunze scored 5 touchdowns during his first four games and since 2024, his 27 end-zone targets rank seventh in all of football.

Should You Draft DJ Moore or Rome Odunze in Fantasy Football 2026?

Chicago’s trading of Moore should be a positive for both players’ fantasy outlook. Moore gets a fresh start and more usage in Buffalo, while Odunze can continue to build on his stellar start to last season. And although he is pushing age 30 and coming off the worst season of his career …

I’m going with Moore.

It could easily be a mistake, especially since I still firmly believe in Odunze. But Ben Johnson’s scheme seems tailored toward the skill sets of Burden and Loveland, whereas Buffalo’s passing attack should mostly run through Moore, especially given how much they’re now paying him.

My main concern with Odunze is, although that early-season stretch was impressive, it comes with somewhat of a caveat. From Weeks 1-8, both Burden and Loveland were still being acclimated following offseason injuries. During that stretch they ran just 24% and 52% of the routes, respectively. The Bills, meanwhile, have implemented this “everybody eats” approach with their passing game, spreading the ball around. But that was mostly due to the absence of a legitimate WR1.

I’ll put my faith in Buffalo that Moore’s usage will reflect the investment they made on him this offseason.

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