LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- You can't blame Chase Claypool for being frustrated with how things have gone through three weeks of the NFL season.
The Bears' offense has been a discombobulated mess, averaging just over 15 points per game.
It's a contract year for Claypool. The fourth-year wide receiver knows this is the most important year of his young career, but he only has four catches on 14 targets for 51 yards and one touchdown through three games.
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As the Bears work to find their offensive identity, Claypool is channeling that frustration into fine-tuning other parts of his game to help the Bears succeed.
“I think rehoning what I want to do really well in, and that’s just the things that I can control like the effort on plays and finishing blocks," Claypool said Friday at Halas Hall. "Those are things I can control and things I’ve been making sure to just master these few weeks. Those are things I can control. The other stuff I can’t worry about. Just got to be at the right place at the right time, and hopefully, that falls into place.
“Sometimes the things around you either elevate you or you have to adapt to allow you to elevate with them,” Claypool later said. “So I’ve just been adapting to the new system and my new role in the system and trying to make the most out of it.”
BEARS ANALYSIS
In 10 games since being traded to the Bears, Claypool has caught just 18 passes for 191 yards.
When asked if the coaching staff is putting him in the best position to thrive, Claypool shook his head and said "no."
"I think every situation has the ability to be ideal, and I think we’re just working towards that," Claypool said when asked if the fit with the Bears wasn't ideal. "I’m not going to say that. I wouldn’t say it’s not an ideal place for me. Obviously, there’s other places – you can say, ‘Oh, I want to be on the best offense with the highest passing yards,’ but that doesn’t happen in football. You just have to make do with what you got."
The Bears' passing offense has been one of the worst in the NFL through three games. They rank 31st in passing yards per game, 29th in completion percentage, 32nd in rating, and 31st in dropback EPA.
Claypool took some heat for some effort issues in Week 1. He believes the blocking effort has improved over the last two weeks but says, "it will never be talked about because it was a good thing that happened."
When asked how the Bears could utilize him better, Claypool didn't want to offer any solutions for the staff.
"You know, I’ll let them decide that," Claypool said. "I’m not going to give any pointers. That’s their job to decide, and I’ll just do what they tell me to do."