Top 25 most important Bears in 2023: No. 6 Chase Claypool

Shaw Local is counting down the Top 25 most important Bears for the 2023 season.

What makes one player more important than another? That's subjective, of course. But for our purposes it comes down to this: Are the Bears worse off if this player can't play? Does this player have untapped potential or past greatness to live up to? Is his story going to be one fans follow closely this season?

The best player on the team isn't always the most important, but he certainly can be. We will announce one player every day between now and the start of training camp.

No. 6 Chase Claypool

Position: Wide receiver

NFL experience: Fourth season

Last year's ranking: N/A

Looking back: The Bears were desperate for help at wide receiver as the trade deadline neared last fall. They were 3-5; not really in contention, but not bad enough that anyone thought they would hold the No. 1 overall draft pick. Given that the Bears were shedding veterans left and right, including pass rusher Robert Quinn and linebacker Roquan Smith that same week, it was a surprise when they made a move to acquire receiver Chase Claypool from Pittsburgh. General manager Ryan Poles traded away a second-round pick - which wound up being the No. 32 overall pick.

Claypool put together back-to-back 800-yard seasons during his first two years in Pittsburgh in 2020 and 2021. When he arrived in Chicago, the transition was slow. He caught just 3 passes for 21 yards in his first two games as he learned the Bears' offense. In all, he played seven games for the Bears with 14 catches for 140 yards with no touchdowns. He missed two games due to a knee injury.

Looking forward: It's easy to criticize the trade that brought Claypool here now, but there are legitimate reasons to remain cautious for a little while longer. Claypool barely had time to get to know his new teammates, including quarterback Justin Fields, and coming into a new offense midseason is just plain hard. The true test will be the 2023 season. What will Claypool look like next season after an entire offseason learning the system and working with Fields?

In the spring, Claypool missed two weeks of OTAs with a soft tissue injury, which isn't a huge deal unless injury issues pop up again in training camp. Claypool doesn't need to total 1,000 yards for the 2023 season to be successful. If he can find a role alongside DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney, that would be a win for the entire offense. Claypool is the clear No. 3 behind those two, but he needs to produce more than two catches per game. Additionally, Claypool's in the final year of his rookie contract. The Bears must decide if they think he's worth keeping around beyond 2023.