CHICAGO — For 52 minutes after making quarterback Caleb Williams the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft, Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles waited.

He waited with eagerness. He waited with anxiety. He waited for the opportunity to make his grandest draft dream come true. Specifically, Poles waited for Rome Odunze, the talented, intelligent and enthusiastic wide receiver from Washington.

Poles had a vision of pairing Odunze with Williams as catalysts to the Bears’ championship pursuit. He felt strongly that Odunze was the most complete receiver in the draft and the second-best prospect overall — behind Williams. But Poles had no guarantees Odunze would be on the board when the Bears picked for the second time in the first round at No. 9.

He grew most tense when the New York Giants went on the clock at No. 6 but breathed a huge sigh of relief when they grabbed LSU’s Malik Nabers as their preferred receiver. At 8:13 p.m., Poles’ window of opportunity opened. He picked Odunze and gave Bears fans an opening to imagine what a new-look passing attack might become for years to come.

JaMarcus Shephard understands why Poles and the Bears were so excited to unite with Odunze. Having served as the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator at Washington for Odunze’s final two college seasons, Shephard is well aware of Odunze’s big-play ability and strive-big mentality.

Shephard, now at Alabama as wide receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator, spoke to the Chicago Tribune recently to offer his assessment of Odunze. Here is that interview, edited for clarity.

— How would you paint the picture of what the Bears are getting in Odunze? And what will be your lasting impression of coaching him?

It’s just the human being that he is. I mean, Rome is a great player but he’s an even better person. He’s going to be the person who’s going to stay and sign every autograph at the end (of practice). He’s going to treat every person that’s in his presence as if they’re the only person on earth. He just has an uncanny ability to relate to every person he meets. So it’s the human being that he is that I’m going to miss more than anything else.

— It’s notable when you meet him that he has a natural connective charisma. How did you feel that when you got to Washington and met him for the first time?

No doubt, that’s there. But he also has a business mindset and very much wants to be business-oriented in terms of ensuring that he has the type of success that he believes he’s capable of. So I respect that piece of it with him as well.

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