When the Chicago Bears take the field for their Week 4 matchup against the Denver Broncos, they’ll be without one of their key offensive players.
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Bears are making wide receiver Chase Claypool a healthy inactive for Sunday’s game.
Claypool’s benching comes two days after the fourth-year wide receiver expressed dissatisfaction with how he’s being used in head coach Matt Eberflus’ offense.
“No,” the 25-year-old said after thinking and shaking his head when asked on Friday if he felt he was being put in a position to best showcase what he can do.
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Through three games this season, the Notre Dame product has compiled just four catches on 14 targets for 51 yards and one touchdown. Meanwhile, the Bears’ offense enter Sunday’s game against Denver ranking 29th in the NFL in yards per game and 31st in passing.
Suffice it to say, it’s been a rocky start to the season for Chicago, which lays claim to an 0-3 record entering Sunday’s matchup. Following a Week 2 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Bears’ quarterback Justin Fields made headlines when he seemingly called out the team’s coaches. The Ohio State product, who said that too much coaching might be a part of the reason he was playing so robotically, later clarified his comments, insisting that everything was fine between himself and the Bears’ coaching staff.
Selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, Claypool enjoyed a strong rookie season, catching 62 passes for 873 yards and nine touchdowns. Last season, he was traded to Chicago ahead of the NFL trade deadline and caught 14 passes for 140 yards in his first seven games with his new team.
With Claypool inactive, the Bears will rely on a receiving corps consisting of D.J. Moore, Darnell Mooney and Equanimeous St. Brown vs. the Broncos.
[NFL.com]
