Do Chicago Bears need to see Chase Claypool again this season?
The Chicago Bears have not seen Chase Claypool for two games, and that spans over three weeks when you include the bye week. With two weeks to go, there is at least a debate of whether he should even be pushing to get back on the field, or if he should just call it a season.
Should the Chicago Bears try to play Chase Claypool?
Matt Ebeflus is adamant that his players are going to play when healthy, and that they are going to compete to win each game. That should not concern fans, they have been doing so all season and are close to the #1 pick.
Still, it does mean that if Claypool is healthy, they are going to bring him onto the field. The two weeks are meaningless for fans, but the momentum gained can be magnified for plenty of reasons.
First, the whole reason the team traded for Claypool now, and not the offseason was these games. The contract with Claypool would have dropped the price significantly, but the team wanted to get a head start, and not have Claypool come in new.
Claypool has been eased in and essentially has one game where he was a number-one receiver with Justin Fields starting. If they do not bring him in, they are basically scrapping the entire premise of the trade.
Beyond that, they have to decide whether to extend him this off-season. Trading pick 33 and getting just one season of a player would hurt. However, based on what they have seen so far, they would be insane to even offer an extension.
If Claypool can at least get two games where he feels good with Justin Fields, they can enter the offseason with momentum. Then, the first few games of the season when offseason additions are struggling can be passed over, and the team can save on some time. If Claypool shows up motivated, balls out in the preseason, and things look great, maybe Chicago does throw him an offer before they anticipate a big season.
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Either way, if the season ends where it does now, it ends with everyone having a sour taste in their mouth. The cost looks worse and worse, the contract situation looks shaky, the time they put into him has been lost, it would not be beneficial to sit him the rest of the year.