The Steelers committed highway robbery when they sent wide receiver Chase Claypool to the Bears before the NFL trade deadline.
Pittsburgh got Chicago’s second-round pick in the deal, and that proves to be the 32nd overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. The Bears have the first pick in every round of the draft, and this year there are only 31 first-round picks because the Dolphins were stripped of theirs for tampering.
And what did the Bears get out of Claypool? Next to nothing. Claypool managed just 14 catches for 140 yards and no touchdowns after the trade.
Claypool still has one year left on his rookie contract and the Bears get him for the cheap price of $1.5 million in 2023, and it’s still possible that he could become a solid contributor for them next year. But it’s safe to say that if the Bears had known their second-round pick would be No. 32 overall, and that Claypool would only catch 14 passes for them, they wouldn’t have made the trade.