Why new WR Claypool believes he can shine with Fields, Bears
Shortly after Chase Claypool's first practice with the Bears, Cole Kmet came over and sat at his buddy's new locker stall.
During the course of their 10-minute chat, Kmet told Claypool that he was more than welcome to move into his new house once it's finished in the coming weeks.
"That guy's family, so I'm gonna be helping him out," said Kmet, who played at Notre Dame with Claypool from 2017-19. "So always gonna take care of him."
Claypool, who was acquired from Pittsburgh for a second-round pick on Nov. 1, has since found a month-to-month rental and may or may not take Kmet up on the offer.
"Maybe I'll just go there for a home-cooked meal one time. Little sleepover," Claypool said. "If I don't like (my apartment), I'll end it after a month and go live with Cole. It's a possibility."
Making a midseason transition is difficult for any pro athlete, so it's obviously huge to have familiar faces like Kmet and fellow WR Equanimeous St. Brown who can help lighten the load. Darnell Mooney stepped up right away, too, asking Claypool if he wanted to come to his house to look at the playbook.
"One of my favorite clips from (Sunday's) game was Cole's touchdown in the corner," offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said of the 4-yard scoring play that cut Miami's lead to 35-32. "Four receivers ran off the bench and went to celebrate with him ... and (Claypool) was one of those four. That just really showed the kind of team we're trying to build."
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Claypool's biggest challenges have been learning the complexities of Getsy's scheme, as well as understanding that this coaching staff expects receivers to go 100% on every play - whether it's run or pass.
"Sometimes it's easy for a receiver to go out for a pass play - or even a run play - (where) somebody else is carrying the ball, you just kind of stop and watch," said WR coach Tyke Tolbert. "We don't stop and watch here. We finish every play."
Claypool was on the field for 26 of 74 offensive plays during the 35-32 loss to the Dolphins last Sunday. He caught 2 passes on 6 targets, ran the ball once, drew a 28-yard pass interference penalty and should have drawn another on the Bears' second-to-last offensive play.
It was a fairly impressive debut, considering the volume of information Claypool had to absorb in such a short period.
"He probably played more than I thought he was gonna be capable of playing," Getsy said. "So that just kind of speaks to ... (who) he is. To say I have a good feel for the type of player he is, that's not realistic. But I love the type of guy he is and teammate he is."
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Claypool grew up in British Columbia and arrived at Notre Dame as an incredibly gifted - yet very raw - receiver. He caught 29 balls as a sophomore, 50 as a junior and then 66 for 1,037 yards and 13 touchdowns as a senior during ND's 11-2 campaign in 2019. He went out with a bang, snaring 7 passes for 146 yards and a TD in a 33-9 win over Iowa State in the Camping World Bowl.
"We all come in as freshmen and you don't really know what you're doing," Kmet said. "You're just kind of athletes and you don't really know really how to play the game of football. ...
"It was cool to come in a year after him and see him be dominant on special teams to begin with and then growing into this amazing receiver that we all saw at the end of his career and now leading into the NFL."
The Steelers chose Claypool with the 49th overall pick in 2020 and he went on to have a solid rookie season by grabbing 62 passes for 873 yards and 9 TDs.
The receiving numbers were similar last year (59-860), but Claypool only caught 2 touchdowns. Claypool's yards per reception dropped from 14.3 to 9.7 this season as the offensively-challenged Steelers moved him into the slot.
"I think at some point the perspective on me was, 'Oh, he's not a red-zone threat for some reason. He's not a deep-ball threat,'" Claypool said after Wednesday's practice at Halas Hall. "I'm not sure when that happened, but I started getting formationed away from those things.
"So it was super hard for me to make big plays because any time there was a big play drawn up I was on the other side."
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It will be interesting to see how this trade works out.
On the one hand, the Bears are thrilled to add a 6-foot-4, 238-pound speedster who could become their No. 1 receiver for years to come. (He'll be an unrestricted free agent in 2024). Claypool's also a willing and physical blocker, something that's extremely important in the Bears' vaunted rushing attack.
On the other hand, teams rarely - if ever - trade a top-flight wideout. And that goes double for astute franchises like the Steelers.
Could Claypool really develop into a Justin Jefferson, Davante Adams, Stefon Diggs, Tyler Lockett or CeeDee Lamb? That would be the dream scenario for Getsy, Justin Fields and Co., but it seems like a bit of a stretch.
Of course, Claypool definitely believes that's what's coming.
"I'm a playmaker," he said. "I feel like I didn't have the full opportunity to show what I can do this year, but I think I've been able to show that in the past. I'm excited to be able to gain that trust with Justin, too, where he knows if he needs a play he can come to me and, frankly, any receiver out there.
"So a dynamic playmaker is the guy that the Bears are getting."