Claypool, 25, may remain on the roster for now, but he has been away from the franchise since last week — at the team’s request. The Bears made Claypool inactive Sunday against the Denver Broncos, asking him to stay home instead of at Soldier Field with his teammates. On Monday, the Bears indicated that Claypool would not travel again with the team for their game Thursday night at the Washington Commanders and is officially inactive for the second straight week.
Claypool made comments to the media before the Week 4 game, wondering if he was being used in the best way possible by the Bears’ coaching staff.
The staff has been criticized not only for the team’s 0-4 start, but also for the sudden resignation of defensive coordinator Alan Williams. On the same day Williams stepped down, midfielder Justin Fields also appeared to question the coaches’ tactics before clarifying his comments the same day.
Claypool played in the Bears’ first three games this season, starting two and catching four passes (on 14 targets) for 51 yards and a touchdown.
The Bears traded for Claypool from the Steelers at last year’s trade deadline, resulting in a second-round pick that ended up being the 32nd overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. In 10 games (five starts) for the Bears, Claypool tallied 18 tackles Catch (43 targets) for 191 yards.
A second-round pick (49th overall) out of Notre Dame in the 2020 NFL Draft, Claypool has 171 career receptions for 2,235 yards and 13 TDs in 49 career games (32 starts), with most of his production while in Pittsburgh. He also has two passing TDs and 33 rushes for 171 yards and two more scores.
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