Bears Could Bench Chase Claypool

Chase Claypool could be heading to the bench in Chicago. Following a poor performance where Claypool looked lethargic and put little effort into his blocking, the Bears and head coach Matt Eberflus were irate at Claypool. For reference, here is a video of some of the effort that Claypool gave Chicago during their loss to the Green Bay Packers.

Zero effort shown by Chase Claypool. What happened to him? pic.twitter.com/b8thKums2s

— OddsStack (@OddsStack) September 13, 2023

When asked about his poor effort, Eberflus noted that he met with Chase Claypool following the poor performance. He registered zero catches on the day on top of everything. But all options are being considered with Claypool after the poor showing. In a contract year, Claypool must have a huge year to make the trade worthwhile for Chicago.

“You all saw the plays that …and again, the perimeter blocking needed to improve for all of us,” Eberflus said. “And we’re gonna get that, work hard to get that done. We’re looking at all possibilities right now. I’m not going to talk about who’s going to be up or down for the game right now for obvious reasons. We’re looking at all things to improve our team — Who’s going to be up and who will be down in terms of the active roster.”

RELATED: ‘It’s Tough’: Chase Claypool Felt Lost in Steelers Offense, Thinks Bears Utilize Him Better

Last week, Claypool noted he felt he would have a huge year. Moreover, he liked Chicago’s offense far better than Pittsburgh’s, not understanding how he fell out of some of the roles he did with the Steelers. He came out in the year ready to play fast and become a productive receiver.

“When you’re more confident in the system. you play faster, make plays, feel good about it, have fun with your teammates more,” Claypool said. “Last season had ebbs and flows. I was making the best of any situation I could, trying to make plays no matter where I was on the field, looking at the positive side of things. It’s tough mentally.”

The Steelers turned that pick into Joey Porter Jr. For the Bears, they looked to add to that room, adding D.J. Moore on top of Claypool to go with Darnell Mooney. However, up to this point, Claypool has proven to fall short of expectations given the draft capital needed to acquire him.