The tenure with the Chicago Bears has gone from bad to worse for former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Chase Claypool.
After being made inactive for the third time on Sunday against the Denver Broncos as a healthy scratch just two days after stating to reporters that the Bears weren’t using him correctly, a report Monday morning from ESPN’s Courtney Cronin that the team told the fourth-year receiver to stay home Sunday as the team looks to trade him.
According to Cronin, a Bears spokesperson stated that the team told Claypool to stay home Sunday, which contradicted what Bears head coach Matt Eberflus told reporters after the 31-28 loss to the Broncos.
“We told him that it was a choice, and he’s at home right now,” Eberflus said, according to original reporting from Cronin for ESPN.
The decision to have Claypool stay away from Soldier Field is the latest in the saga for the former Steelers receiver, who was traded to the Bears last season for a second-round pick that ultimately became the No. 32 overall selection, leading to the Steelers landing cornerback Joey Porter Jr. in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Prior to the news coming out that Claypool was not at Soldier Field for the Week Four matchup with the Broncos after being made inactive, reports surfaced that the team was trying to trade him, seeking a fifth or sixth-round draft pick in return.
Based on the way things have gone publicly in recent days for the receiver, the Bears might be hard-pressed to get that type of return for Claypool via trade after just 10 games with the team. Claypool’s production has been a real problem as he has just 18 receptions for 191 yards and a touchdown in 10 games on 43 targets with Chicago. His effort has been questioned publicly at times too, and then on Friday he criticized the coaching staff for not using him correctly.
That’s one way to torpedo a career.
Though the Bears’ spokesperson stated that the team told Claypool to stay home Sunday as it looks to trade him, Eberflus added Sunday after the loss to Denver that he expects Claypool in the facility at Halas Hall on Monday and that he’ll be with the team moving forward. Stay tuned.
UPDATE (9:51 AM): Eberflus told local Chicago station ESPN 1000 that Claypool will, in fact, remain away from the team for this Thursday’s game against the Washington Commanders.
