LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- In the end, the Chase Claypool trade cost the Bears the No. 32 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
That's a steep price for 14 catches and 140 yards in seven games.
But Bears general manager Ryan Poles didn't make the midseason deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers expecting Claypool to light Chicago on fire this fall. Would he have preferred that outcome? Absolutely. But Poles knows the jury on the Claypool trade remains out as the wide receiver starts a critical offseason of work with quarterback Justin Fields.
"That's the difference between trades in baseball and basketball, it's like plug and play," Poles said Tuesday at Halas Hall in a state of the franchise press conference. "There's an entire offseason and half of a season of installs and all the things you need to do collectively to play and execute offensive play. On top of that, it was a little bit choppy with Justin getting dinged up, [Chase] got dinged up. So it was a little bit choppy of a start. I told Chase, and we had a really good conversation, I'm not blinking at that one at all. I think he's gonna help us moving forward, and I'm excited about it."
The most notable moment from Claypool's first seven games with the Bears came during the Week 17 blowout loss to the Detroit Lions. After another three-and-out by the offense, Claypool headed to the sideline, tossed his helmet, had words with receivers coach Tyke Tolbert and sat on the bench to stew before Fields came over to calm him down.
Those kinds of losses are unacceptable to Claypool, who played at Notre Dame before being drafted by the Steelers. The third-year wide receiver said he was sending the rest of his teammates a message that they need to get "uncomfortable" with losing.
"I was all fired up because we can’t lose that bad, ever," Claypool said. "We have to have a little bit more pride, a little bit more heart, so it don’t happen again.
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"I was coming off the field, three-and-out, sit on the bench, do the same thing over," Claypool continued. "Something’s gotta change in that moment. We gotta realize the drives where we have to score. We have to realize when it’s not OK to go three-and-out. We gotta act that way. If we go three-and-out, it can’t just be OK. And it isn’t. But we gotta really have that fire and energy and realize that, yo, it’s time to go. We went three-and-out two times in a row. They’re scoring points. The lead’s getting bigger. What are we gonna do about it?"
Claypool has said he is excited for the offseason and OTAs to get more on-field work with Fields. While those offseason workouts in shorts can seem meaningless, they are critical in getting a quarterback and his receivers on the same page.
The Bears have harped on rhythm and timing in the passing game all season. In order for Fields and Claypool to have the kind of connection the young quarterback does with Darnell Mooney, they need more time on task.
A full offseason to work with Fields and become further immersed in offensive coordinator Luke Getsy's system has the Bears confident Claypool will be a factor in 2023.
The third-year wide receiver is eligible for a contract extension this offseason, but Poles wants to see the production before he opens up the Bears' wallet.
"With health, with Justin being out for a little bit, your expectations, I told him, yeah, I wish he came in with 1,000 yards and we’re going," Poles said. "But it didn’t happen that way. But do I believe in that talent and what he can bring to this team? Yeah, I do. I still think we’re going to get that.
"In terms of the contract stuff, we just got to take the next step, see how he gets implemented and how he does in this offseason. He's going to spend a lot of time with Justin as well as the other receivers and build that chemistry. We’ll evaluate that even clearer next year."
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When Poles traded for Claypool, he probably didn't think the Bears were headed for the No. 1 pick. He probably assumed that at 3-5, the Bears were headed for five or six wins, and that selection would be somewhere in the No. 40 range.
It isn't.
The Bears finished the season on a 10-game losing streak and went 0-9 after bringing Claypool to Chicago.
There's belief in Halas Hall that Claypool will blossom in 2023. Given the cost of acquiring Claypool, they need that belief to manifest into reality.