Tag: Chase Claypool

Former Bears WR Chase Claypool explains what went wrong in Chicago

Chase Claypool failed to take accountability when explaining why things didn’t work out with the Bears.

Former Bears receiver Chase Claypool’s time in Chicago was nothing short of a disaster. Whether it was a lack of on-field production (and effort) or off-field concerns, Claypool just wasn’t a good fit with the Bears.

Following concerns in the first three games, Chicago benched Claypool for two games before finding a trade partner in the Miami Dolphins. The Bears and Dolphins swapped late-round draft picks in 2025.

During Claypool’s introductory press conference with the Dolphins, he was asked what went wrong in Chicago. And his answer completely lacked accountability.

“I think that when you lose a lot of games in a row, there’s frustration naturally,” Claypool said, via Dolphins Wire. “That’s new for everybody, I’m sure, from the top down. I think just being excited about getting some wins and stuff like that, I think that just comes naturally. Once you start winning, things start getting less frustrating, obviously.”

Claypool’s issues stem beyond his lack of on-field production, which amounted to 18 catches for 191 yards and one touchdown in 10 games. There were some internal issues, including Claypool being difficult in meetings and coaches had trouble getting him to buy into his role on offense, as reported by NBC Sports Chicago.

There’s no doubt that a 14-game losing streak can take a toll. But using it as an excuse for his actions illustrates why Claypool is now with his third team in four years.

It’s certainly an interesting coincidence (or not) that the Bears offense has been at its best without Claypool on the field the past two weeks. It’s allowed for more 12-personnel, which has been a part of Chicago’s new-look identity and success on offense.

The most frustrating thing about the whole thing is the Bears ultimately wasted the No. 32 pick in last year’s draft for a player who never helped elevate the offense. But, as general manager Ryan Poles has learned, sometimes you swing and miss.

Everything WR Chase Claypool said in his first Dolphins’ media availability

Here’s what the team’s newest WR said on Wednesday.

Just a week ago, the Miami Dolphins made another trade that could end up having a major impact on the team down the line, as they acquired wide receiver Chase Claypool from the Chicago Bears.

Claypool had been a healthy scratch in the weeks leading up to the move due to clashes with the coach and a poor fit in their organization.

Since then, Claypool was on the sideline for Miami’s win over the New York Giants, and on Wednesday, he spoke to the media for the first time since joining the Dolphins.

Here’s everything he had to say:

Social media reacts to Bears’ WR Chase Claypool trade

Steelers fans and the rest of social media react to the Chicago Bears trade of Chase Claypool to Miami Dolphins.

On Friday morning, the news broke that the Chicago Bears were trading former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Chase Claypool to the Miami Dolphins. Claypool’s fate will forever be of interest to the Steelers because Pittsburgh fleeced the Bears for a second-round pick in that trade last year. Let’s see what social media is saying about the trade.

Analysis: Seahawks should follow example of Friday trades by 49ers, Dolphins

The 49ers added another pass rusher and the Dolphins added another WR. Here’s why the Seahawks should follow their example.

Aside from one horrific half against the Rams in Week 1, these Seahawks have had a splendid 2023 season so far. Heading into their early bye week Seattle is 3-1 despite having to weather a rash of minor injuries to some key players, especially their young offensive line. The team has weathered the storm and if they can avoid major injuries to foundational pieces like Geno Smith and Bobby Wagner they should be in the thick of the playoff race.

Now comes the bad news. As good as these Seahawks look, they have to be held to a higher standard than most teams. Why? Because they happen to share a division with the most talented team in the NFL – one that’s managed to start the year 4-0 despite starting a meme at quarterback.

Yes, the 49ers remain the team to beat – not only in the NFC West – but right now arguably the entire league. San Francisco is in the No. 1 spot in our most recent power rankings. With a win over the fourth-ranked Cowboys on Sunday night they can prove they are the heaviest heavyweight in the conference this year. They’re getting tougher to beat by the minute, too.

Today two trades took place around the NFL that illustrate a key point as to how the Seahawks can catch up. Two contenders – one in each conference – added pieces at positions they are both already loaded at.

First of all, the Dolphins sent some Day 3 picks to the Bears for embattled wide receiver Chase Claypool.

Claypool joins what’s already a ludicrous receiver corps, including Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle and some damn-decent backups, as well. So, why do the Dolphins need another receiver? They don’t. The point is they’ve reinforced their roster where it is strongest – something we have emphasized that all long-term contenders do. It’s how the Eagles turned their defensive line into a decade-long nightmare for their opponents and how the Ravens secondary has seemingly dominated the AFC for even longer.

The Niners are not strangers to this concept, of course. That’s why even though their defensive line is the best in the NFL outside of Philly they added another piece today by trading for Randy Gregory.

This is one of those moves that makes division rivals sigh. Or, as we put it when the 49ers signed Javon Hargrave during the offseason:

And so Gregory joins an already lethal pass rush rotation that includes Hargrave, Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and Drake Jackson.

On paper the Seahawks have closed the talent gap with the 49ers a good bit over the last two offseasons. We’ll have to wait until they face them on the field to see just how much.

However, there’s a good chance Seattle will have to add another key piece (or two, or three) before they actually can surpass San Francisco’s overall level of talent. As was the case with Miami and the Niners, their best options might make already-strong positions groups even stronger.

For the Seahawks, that primarily means wide receivers, cornerbacks, edge rushers and offensive tackles. They might also want to consider what seemingly only the Packers and the Cowboys have figured out and get another potential franchise quarterback before they need one, not after. Green Bay got Aaron Rodgers while they still had Brett Favre, then Jordan Love while they still had Rodgers. Meanwhile, Dallas added Dak Prescott just in time to catch Tony Romo on his way out – then added Trey Lance for pennies on the dollar a couple months ago (no front office has a perfect track record – not even the Niners).

It’s never a bad time to reinforce your team’s strengths, but the next big landmark will be the trade deadline. In our recent projections for Seattle’s next four games we have them winning the first three – which would make them 6-1 going into the trade deadline. Even if we’re wrong about the Cleveland game – a distinct possibility given how potent their defense is – and the Seahawks are 5-2 they should still be buyers at the deadline.

Given where they are right now compared to the competition, getting a third quarterback, a fifth receiver, a fourth tackle or a god knows what number corner probably won’t move the needle much. To catch up with the Niners in either this year or the next they’re going to need to have a reliably disruptive pass rush.

Right now they’re on a good path – having dominated both the Panthers and the Giants’ offensive lines with an aggressive gameplan. After racking up the numbers in those two games they now lead the NFL in both sacks and total pressures. Time will tell if that’s sustainable, but one way to make sure is to add another pass rusher – even with Boye Mafe, Uchenna Nwosu, Darrell Taylor, Mario Edwards and Jarran Reed all currently excelling in this area.

It’s a long season and defensive performance tends to be inconsistent from week to week and month to month. Bottom line, they can’t bank on playing poor and beat up offensive lines all year and need more firepower up-front. The fate of the season may depend on Pete Carroll and John Schneider’s ability to trade for another multiple pass rusher at the end of the month.

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Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill reacts to Chase Claypool trade

The Cheetah shares his thoughts on Miami’s trade.

The Miami Dolphins have made a few trades to acquire players in the last couple of seasons that have positively impacted the team.

In 2022, Miami acquired two Pro Bowlers in trades, wide receiver Tyreek Hill and linebacker Bradley Chubb, as well as running back Jeff Wilson Jr.

This offseason, the Dolphins traded for cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who is currently on injured reserve recovering from a meniscus injury.

On Friday, Miami completed another transaction, acquiring wide receiver Chase Claypool from the Chicago Bears. This is the second trade the Dolphins have made with the Bears in the last few months, as they sent Dan Feeney to Chicago during roster cuts.

With the news of the Claypool trade, Hill shared his initial thoughts on Twitter.

Hill’s been extremely supportive of his teammates since arriving in Miami, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him take the newcomer under his wing.

Miami’s receiver room now includes Hill, Claypool, Jaylen Waddle, Braxton Berrios, Cedrick Wilson Jr. and Robbie Chosen. It’s arguably the deepest group in the league, and that doesn’t even include River Cracraft and Erik Ezukanma, who are currently on injured reserve and the non-football injury list, respectively.

Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel reacts to Chase Claypool trade

Miami’s head coach was excited to have the new wideout.

The Miami Dolphins made a trade on Friday, acquiring wide receiver Chase Claypool and a 2025 seventh-round pick from the Chicago Bears for a 2025 sixth-round selection.

After the trade was announced Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel was asked about the move during his regular media availability, and he shared the team’s thinking in making a move.

“That’s an exciting opportunity,” McDaniel said. “It’s kind of like Christmas, in terms of I don’t know anything. So, when Chris (Grier) comes to me about something that he has on the docket, we have good discussions. For us, it felt like a situation where there might be a role to carve out for him. I think, for the player, you have a guy who wants to take things into his own hands and have an opportunity to be on a team. To me, beyond that, it was an opportunity to take advantage of. We definitely weren’t looking for receiver help. It wasn’t in that nature at all. (We’re) very very happy with our receiver core. I think one thing that Chris and I have always agreed upon, how we operate and do business is you have to stay steadfast to the commitment of making your team as good as it can be…”

McDaniel also spoke specifically about Claypool and what it is that he can bring to the table for his team.

“He’s fast,” McDaniel said. “You’re very open-minded to the unique attributes of a guy that comes into the league and generally you don’t see that often receivers gain a reputation through special teams and then develop. As a receiver, there’s a multitude of ways that he’s contributed…”

In 49 games across four seasons, Claypool has recorded 171 receptions for 2,235 yards and 13 touchdowns. However, a majority of that came in his first two seasons.

Since the start of 2022, he’s recorded 50 catches for 502 yards and two scores.

Chicago Bears trade ex-Steelers WR Chase Claypool to Miami Dolphins

The Bears trade to acquire Chase Claypool will go down as one of the worst in history.

The next chapter of the Chase Claypool saga now heads south to Miami. The former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver, who was traded to the Chicago Bears last season didn’t make it a full year and has now been traded to the Miami Dolphins for a swap of 6th and 7th round NFL draft picks.

Pittsburgh dealt Claypool to the Bears in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2023 NFL daft. This is the pick the Steelers used to draft cornerback Joey Porter Jr. The problems Claypool had in Pittsburgh were not cured by a new team and Chicago saw much of the same issues, forcing the trade.

Miami is probably a nice landing spot for Claypool given how much talent is on the roster, there won’t be much asked of him in the passing offense. Miami is loaded with skill players and an emphasis on speed. There should be very little pressure on Claypool to even contribute.

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Twitter reacts to Bears trading Chase Claypool to Dolphins

The Bears have traded Chase Claypool to the Dolphins. As you can imagine, NFL fans had plenty to say about the move.

The Chicago Bears have traded receiver Chase Claypool to the Miami Dolphins, the team announced Friday.

As far as compensation goes, it’s essentially a swap of late round picks with the Bears getting a 2025 sixth-round pick in exchange for Claypool and a 2025 seventh-round selection.

Chicago had been trying to trade Claypool since last week, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, and they finally were able to get a deal done.

As you can imagine, NFL fans had plenty to say about the move. Especially considering the disaster of a trade it was for general manager Ryan Poles, who sent a second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Claypool, who didn’t last a full calendar year.

But Poles did admit his mistake in trading Claypool, and many were actually surprised the Bears got anything at all in return, as Claypool was trending toward being released.

Here’s how Twitter reacted to the Bears trading Claypool to the Dolphins:

Dolphins acquire disgruntled Bears WR Chase Claypool in trade

Miami gets another wide receiver via trade.

The Miami Dolphins are no strangers to bold moves, and they’ve made another one.

According to the Athletic’s Dianna Russini, the Dolphins have acquired wide receiver Chase Claypool from the Chicago Bears.

Miami will send a 2025 sixth-round pick to the Bears and receive Claypool a 2025 seventh-round selection.

Claypool has been a healthy scratch in recent weeks after some apparent disagreements with Chicago’s coaching staff.

Since arriving in Chicago in 2022, Claypool has been disappointing, but he flashed early in his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

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Bears trade WR Chase Claypool to Dolphins

The Chase Claypool era is officially over in Chicago.

The Chase Claypool era in Chicago is officially over.

The Chicago Bears are trading Claypool to the Miami Dolphins, the team announced Friday.

Chicago had been trying to trade Claypool since last week, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, and they finally were able to get a deal done.

As far as compensation goes, the Bears are receiving a 2025 sixth-round pick in exchange for Claypool and a 2025 seventh-round selection.

Bears general manager Ryan Poles addressed the Claypool situation on ESPN 1000 ahead of last night’s game against the Washington Commanders, where he all but closed the chapter on Claypool’s time in Chicago.

“I always look at things from a player’s perspective,” Poles said, via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin. “You have a player going into his free agent year, who wants to be productive and help us, and when things aren’t going the right way, sometimes you get emotional, things don’t work out and you struggle to blend in and keep resilient and stay resilient with the rest of the crew. I think Chase is going to learn from this situation, we all will, and I wish him luck moving forward throughout his career.”

The Bears sent their 2023 second-round pick — which turned into No. 32 overall — to the Steelers last November for Claypool. He played in just 10 games with the Bears, recording 18 catches for 191 yards and one touchdown. Claypool never won a game in Chicago. The trade will go down as Poles’ worst move in his early years as GM.

Now, Claypool gets a fresh start with his third team.