After breaking out for 11 touchdowns as a rookie, Claypool has totaled three scores with an average of 3.5 catches per game over the last two years. It was even worse in seven games with the Bears last season, getting a cool 2.0 grabs per outing (many of which without Darnell Mooney playing). Since then the Bears added D.J. Moore, all but eliminating Claypool as the team's possible go-to receiver. Claypool's past performance as a plus-size receiver is literally the only reason to even think about taking him in drafts. It certainly isn't his recent play, nor is it Chicago's offense, which isn't expected to become pass-heavy. Late-round picks can be better spent than on Claypool this summer.
Claypool caught three passes for 31 yards and a touchdown in the Bears' 27-17 loss to the Buccaneers on Sunday.
The Bears lost Darnell Mooney to a knee injury during the contest, and Claypool then functioned as the primary receiving complement to DJ Moore. Claypool led the team with eight targets, and he could get a chance to build on his encouraging effort if Mooney is forced to miss time.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Suiting up Week 2
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Claypool is listed as active ahead of Chicago's Week 2 matchup against Tampa Bay.
There had been some doubts about Claypool's gameday roster status following a disappointing Week 1 showing, both from an effort and overall production standpoint (he was held to zero catches on two targets despite playing 55 snaps). The Bears will ultimately give the fifth-year wideout a chance to work through these issues, but Claypool remains an incredibly risky fantasy option as the No. 3 wide receiver in a run-first Chicago offense.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Expected to play Week 2
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Claypool is practicing as normal this week and is expected to play Sunday against the Bucs, Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Claypool was dreadful in the Week 1 opener versus Green Bay, parlaying 58 offensive snaps into zero catches on two targets. Coach Matt Eberflus openly admitted the team was going to look into Claypool's Week 2 role. He simply can't be trusted in fantasy lineups until further notice.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Could be headed to bench
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Bears coach Matt Eberflus was non-committal Wednesday when asked whether Claypool would see a reduced role this Sunday at Tampa Bay, Chris Emma of 670TheScore.com reports. "We're looking at all possibilities right now," Eberflus said.
Claypool struggled as a blocker and finished without a catch on two targets in Sunday's 38-20 loss to the Packers, operating as the No. 3 receiver behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney. The No. 3 role in a run-heavy Bears offense isn't conducive to fantasy value even if Claypool plays well in real life, which is something he arguably hasn't done since the middle part of his 2020 rookie season. Lack of effort as a repeat theme isn't promising, nor is it a good look when one of the largest wideouts in the league -- listed at 6-foot-4, 238 pounds -- repeatedly draws attention for poor blocking. Emma and other Bears beat reporters have hinted at the possibility of Equanimeous St. Brown being active instead of Claypool for Week 2 at Tampa Bay, with rookie Tyler Scott or veteran Trent Taylor likely taking the No. 3 receiver role in that scenario.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Avoids injury report
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Claypool (hamstring) wasn't listed on the Bears' initial Week 1 injury report released Wednesday.
Since injuring his hamstring during an Aug. 9 practice, Claypool sat out the entire preseason slate, likely with his presence for the season opener in mind. Head coach Matt Eberflus expressed as much to Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic on Aug. 24, and indeed, Claypool will be ready to play Sunday against the Packers. With DJ Moore's addition to the Bears this offseason, Claypool has been bumped down to the team's third wide receiver behind Moore and Darnell Mooney, making it unclear how many targets he can expect from quarterback Justin Fields on a weekly basis.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Won't play in preseason opener
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Claypool (hamstring) isn't suited up for Saturday's preseason opener against the Titans, Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com reports.
Claypool tweaked his hamstring during practice Wednesday, and while it appears to be a minor issue, it's not surprising to see Chicago proceed with caution. The wideout's next chance to suit up for game action will come next Saturday against the Colts, but he'll likely have to practice at some point during the week to be cleared for that matchup.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Suffers hamstring injury
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Claypool didn't finish Wednesday's practice due to a hamstring injury, Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Claypool remained on the field with teammates after injuring his hamstring, so there's some reason to believe the issue is minor. That said, the Bears could always tend toward caution and hold Claypool out of Saturday's preseason matchup against the Titans, even if there's no serious concern about his health.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Will practice Wednesday
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General manager Ryan Poles confirmed Tuesday that Claypool (undisclosed) is "good to go" and will practice Wednesday, Zack Perason of 247Sports reports.
Poles said Claypool's placement on the PUP list was because he "just needed an extra day or two" to get right," per Larry Mayer of the Bears' official site. Claypool, who joined the Bears midseason last year, should benefit from a full offseason to get up to speed with the playbook and build chemistry with Justin Fields. He figures to operate as the team's No. 3 wideout behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Comes off PUP list
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The Bears activated Claypool (undisclosed) from the active/PUP list Monday, Larry Mayer of the team's official site reports.
Claypool closed out the offseason program in mid-June with absences related to a soft-tissue injury, which presumably resulted in his inability to pass a physical Sunday and land on the PUP list in the first place. With that step behind him, though, he'll now be able to participate in Chicago's first practice of training camp Wednesday. Claypool is slated to serve as the team's No. 3 wide receiver behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney this season.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Placed on active/PUP list
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The Bears placed Claypool (undisclosed) on the active/PUP list Sunday, Field Yates of ESPN reports.
Claypool was sidelined for spring practices due to a soft-tissue injury and didn't participate during June minicamp with an undisclosed injury. It's unclear when the Notre Dame product will be healthy, but he's eligible to practice and/or play at any point during the preseason. When available, Claypool will presumably compete for a key role in Chicago's wideout room behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney, the latter of whom is expected to be 100 percent for training camp after missing OTAs due to an ankle injury.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Remains sidelined
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Claypool (undisclosed) didn't participate in Tuesday's minicamp practice, Alyssa Barbieri of USA Today reports.
According to coach Matt Eberflus, Claypool, who sustained a soft tissue injury during OTAs, is "dealing with a few things" at this stage, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, with the team focused on making sure the wideout is fully healthy ahead of training camp. Once he's past his current injury issues, Claypool will look to cement a key role in a Chicago WR corps that also includes newcomer DJ Moore along with returnee Darnell Mooney, who is recovering from an ankle injury but is expected to be available for training camp.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Not practicing
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Claypool is being held out of practice Wednesday with a soft-tissue injury, Mark Grote of 670TheScore.com reports.
Claypool's absence from a few spring practices shouldn't matter so long as he's healthy for training camp this summer. He looks to be third on the depth chart at receiver behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney (ankle), the latter of whom has also been absent from spring practices. Claypool struggled to produce after coming over from Pittsburgh in a trade last fall and now enters his contract year in a suboptimal situation for putting up numbers.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Active for Week 17
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Claypool (knee) is active for Sunday's matchup against the Lions.
As expected, Claypool will suit up Sunday for the first time since Week 13. Before suffering the knee injury, the 2020 second-round pick totaled 21 receptions on 36 targets for 197 yards across his first seven games with Chicago. With Darnell Mooney (ankle) on injured reserve, Claypool figures to operate as the Bears' No. 1 wideout in a group that also features Equanimeous St. Brown, Byron Pringle, Velus Jones, N'Keal Harry and Dante Pettis.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Back as limited participant
Rotowire
Claypool (knee) practiced in a limited capacity Thursday.
After missing the last two games due to a knee injury, Claypool made his return to practice for the first time since Week 13. This marks his first visible sign of progress in his recovery effort, but it remains to be seen if he'll gain clearance to play Sunday at Detroit. Equanimeous St. Brown (concussion) also was limited Thursday, while Dante Pettis (ankle) sat out, so the Bears have a number of question marks in the receiving corps in the midst of Week 17 prep.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Status in doubt for Saturday
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Claypool (knee) is listed as doubtful for Saturday's game against the Bills.
Claypool has managed just one limited listing on Bears injury reports the last two weeks due to a knee issue, which appears destined to sideline him for a second consecutive contest. Equanimeous St. Brown (concussion) already has been ruled out for Week 16 action, so assuming Claypool joins him on the sideline Saturday, Chicago will be rolling with some combination of Byron Pringle, Dante Pettis, Velus Jones and N'Keal Harry (back) at wide receiver.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Skips out on practice Wednesday
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Claypool (knee) didn't practice Wednesday.
Prior to sitting out this past Sunday's loss to the Eagles, Claypool was held out of every Week 15 session as he tended to a knee injury. The Bears opened Week 16 prep with a walk-through session Tuesday, for which he was listed as a limited participant, but the third-year pro fell back to no activity one day later. Claypool has just one more chance to get on-field work Thursday before Chicago potentially makes a ruling on his availability for Saturday's game against the Bills. Equanimeous St. Brown (concussion) also sat out both Tuesday and Wednesday, so the team is staring down the prospect of being without its top two wide receivers this weekend.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Loses fumble in defeat
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Claypool caught five of six targets for 28 yards but lost a fumble in Sunday's 28-19 loss to the Packers.
Claypool coughed the ball up while taking a hit that left him injured during the second quarter. Although he was able to reenter the game, Claypool made a limited impact on his handful of catches. He'll now enter Chicago's bye week before returning to face Philadelphia in Week 15.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Logs full practice
Rotowire
Claypool (knee) was a full participant in Thursday's practice.
Claypool had his reps capped Wednesday on account of the knee issue, but his ability to practice fully a day later clears the way for him to play Thursday against the Packers. The third-year receiver is coming off a Week 12 outing against the Jets in which he took the field for 66 percent of the offensive snaps, his largest share since being acquired from the Steelers on Nov. 1. After working with No. 2 quarterback Trevor Siemian (oblique) last week, Claypool will likely have the luxury of being on the receiving end of targets Week 13 from Justin Fields (shoulder), who also practiced fully Thursday and appears set to put an end to his one-game absence.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Tending to knee issue
Rotowire
Claypool was a limited participant at Wednesday's practice due to a knee injury.
Claypool has been relatively quiet during his four games with the Bears, compiling a cumulative 7-83-0 receiving line on 16 targets. He's coming off a 66 percent snap share this past Sunday at the Jets, his highest with his new squad. While a health concern is affecting Claypool's practice reps to kick off Week 13 prep, he'll have two chances to get back to full ahead of Sunday's matchup with the Packers.
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Bears' Chase Claypool: Week 13 Waiver Priority List
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I'll have more interest in Claypool if Justin Fields (shoulder) can start in Week 14 against the Packers, but Claypool should get a bump in targets and production with Darnell Mooney (ankle) out for the season. It's been a tough go for Mooney since joining the Bears via trade from the Steelers with just seven catches for 83 yards, but he did have two catches for 51 yards on five targets in Week 12 at the Jets with Trevor Siemian. Keep an eye on Fields, and Claypool would be in the No. 3 receiver conversation if Fields can start against the Packers in Week 13. Claypool is worth adding for 1 percent of your remaining FAB.
