The acquisition of DJ Moore is one reason for the Bears to be hopeful about their wide receiving corps this season and another is that Chase Claypool will have a full offseason with the team.
Chicago sent a second-round pick to the Steelers for Claypool ahead of last year’s trade deadline, but picking up a new offense on the fly didn’t go all that smoothly. Claypool had 14 catches for 140 yards in seven games after the trade and that led to questions about what kind of production he’ll bring to the team in 2023.
On Tuesday, however, quarterback Justin Fields offered a positive take on where things are going for Claypool this year.
“Chase has improved tremendously from the end of last year to now,” Fields said, via Josh Schrock of NBCSportsChicago.com. “That’s one thing I’m truly proud to say, seeing his work ethic, his attitude change. You can just see he’s taking another step, so definitely excited for that.”
Claypool is headed into the final year of his rookie deal, which will act as motivation along with proving the Bears right about their view that he can help Fields and the offense climb higher after a couple of rough seasons.