Bears Receive: Chase Claypool
Steelers Receive: 2023 2nd Round Draft Pick
Note: The pick is Chicago’s actual pick, not the one they recently acquired through the Roquan Smith deal with the Ravens.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Just before the 2022 NFL Trade Deadline, the third-year wide receiver out of Notre Dame was traded to the Chicago Bears. Chase Claypool was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2nd Round of the 2020 NFL Draft. His rookie season was his best one to date as he saw a career-high in targets (109), receiving yards (873), receptions (62), and touchdowns (9). He also ran for two touchdowns on trick plays in his rookie season, something he hasn’t done in the last two years. Since then, things have gone slightly downhill, but that can largely be thanks to the plethora of wide receivers that the Steelers have had.
Between JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and now rookie George Pickens, there just have always been several mouths to feed. From Ben Roethlisberger to rookie Kenny Pickett, Claypool has always been fighting for targets.
For the Steelers, they’re getting a second-round pick back for Claypool, which is what they paid for him. Really, it doesn’t move the needle a ton as there’s a decent chance Claypool only has been very good thanks to the system he’s been in and the way the Steelers use their wide receivers. That being said, the Steelers definitely are one of, if not the best team in the league at picking rookie wide receivers in recent years, so maybe this really will help Chicago out after all.
Chicago Bears
Now with the Bears, Claypool should start opposite Darnell Mooney. The only other options that Justin Fields has had to work with have been Equanimeous St. Brown, Byron Pringle, and Cole Kmet. This is a solid upgrade for Fields who has been desperate for some pass-catchers to help him out. Claypool has put up 800+ receiving yards in each of his first two seasons, something that definitely cannot be said for any other wideout in Chicago.
Fantasy Outlook
For fantasy football purposes, this is a bit of a bump for Claypool simply due to opportunity. You’ll definitely want to wait and see how it all plays out and wait a few weeks for him to get acclimated, but he’s worth stashing. Fields gets a decent upgrade as well as someone who has been starting to get a bit better and the Bears are beginning to use his strengths more, such as designing more run plays for him.
Claypool is rostered in 71.4% of leagues on ESPN and 58% of leagues on Yahoo.
Dynasty Outlook
For dynasty purposes, this move doesn’t do much for Claypool. If anything, I think it’s a slight downgrade. Going from an organization like Pittsburgh who has been known to make great use of their wide receivers, to what’s going on in Chicago isn’t ideal. While there is plenty of upside surrounding Fields and this Chicago offense, it’s going to be a while before they fix their bigger issues such as their offensive line. He’s someone I’d be looking to sell high on or just holding to wait and see what happens.
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