He was not a bust in Pitt. Expectations for him were sky high after his rookie year and he might not have realized them, which disappointed the team, but he was not a bust.

I've heard a few experts on the airwaves saying he didn't lead the a bad WR group in Pitt. There has not been a time in any of Claypool's three years where Pitt has not had a STACKED WR group. What are these guys watching? Is it because they just aren't that familiar with Dionte Johnson's name or don't know George Pickens' talent? This year is probably the worst it has been and it was still 3 deep before the trade. They used two relatively high draft picks on WR this year in Pickens and Austin. Also, he hasn't developed but I think Miles Boykin has a lot of ability (would probably be the #2 WR in the Bears locker room pre trade)

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

I am not saying he is a bust during his time in Pitts. And you make some good points. Hopefully he works out. Just you know how things seem to go for the Bears. Hard to not be impacted by that negative thinking.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I think the WR room just became much more interesting. Claypool, Mooney, Pringle, Velus, St. Brown and Pettis. They all kind of get slotted into the spots they should be with this move and you don't have to ask any of them to be more than they are.

Now that it is a development year, I see two priorities with this group: 1. get Claypool and Fields comfortable with each other, and 2. start defining Velus' role in the NFL.

Now Poles will have to handle the situation of getting Mooney, a productive, tough player who has exceeded expectations and gives you everything he has and Claypool, an ultra talented but under productive player, locked in on longer term deals at the same time.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

What's that? He can't catch, can't field punts, and can't run routes.

we really haven't seen enough to make any conclusions

Get him back there on punts, whether it costs the team or not. I'd even be fine with him just fair catching everything until he is completely comfortable. He MUST learn that skill.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Pringle's correct spot is somewhere outside of Chicago.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Strangely accurate for now. Long term, he's probably a gadget player - kickoff returns, jet sweeps and fly routes

Jones has 5 punt returns and 2 fumbles. He can learn to fair catch in practice. You can't put him out there and just say, "oh well," when (not if) he muffs another punt and your D has to go right back to work without a breather.

Bears trade a LB- a pretty good player but a headcase- whom they were not going to sign long term nor franchise tag. In return, they pick up a much needed WR, a 5th round pick, and still have a 2nd round pick. Maybe Claypool works out, maybe he doesn't. But you cannot objectively say the Bears made bad moves this week.

_________________

I've been a Poles critic but credit him for the moves made this week. I hope Claypool fulfills his potential but even if not I don't think this is an overpayment. This is basically drafting a 24 year old WR in second round except the "rookie" has two years of experience wherein he showed you he can be a playmaker. The downside is you have to make a decision on paying him sooner than if he were actually a rookie. I am not sure how one can say choosing a WR with the second round pick next year is objectively better than just acquiring Claypool with that same pick: they both have the same downside potential but with Claypool at least you know what his floor is.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

bears D isn't going to cause many punts the rest of the way

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

All the more reason to have a guy out there you know can catch the ball.

_________________

Ignore them. Mike Tomlin likes a specific type of guy. If you talk out of turn, he kicks you out of the circle. Claypool publicly questioned the way Tomlin did things last year. They were looking to replace him after that.

He doesn't have a noodle armed quarterback throwing him the ball or Matt Canada calling the plays. If he stays healthy, we're going to consider this a steal.

_________________
Be well

GO BEARS!!!

Next week may be rough, but it'll get better.

_________________
Be well

GO BEARS!!!

If that's true then that's concerning. You just have to hope the coaching staff will help mature. I do find it disconcerting though that Tomlin wasn't able to get him right, if indeed the stuff is true. I know Nas isn't into Tomlin but I have bought into him as a coach and disciplinarian.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Najee Harris still has a starting job. He's been by far the worst player on offense this season for the Steelers. Najee may be playing through an injury, but being a Tomlin guy keeps him atop the depth chart.

_________________
Be well

GO BEARS!!!

So pre-injury Johnny Knox? There is a role for that if he can also learn to be the personal protector (and fake threat) on punts.

_________________
"When people want their version of the truth, they go find it, no matter how baseless their beliefs." -- Ken Rosenthal

Heard some analysis that actually made sense, Claypool is one of the better go route guys, can go up and get contested catches making him a great fit for Fields, who tends to take a few shots downfield each game. This also opens up Mooney to run crossing routes which fits his size and skill set better.

Can't help but think Claypool easily pulls and gets into the endzone at the end of the Washington game simple because he is so much bigger than Mooney.

You started the year with Mooney and a bunch of guys, now you have Mooney and a two new guys that were early round picks, so you have upgraded the size and talent level of your WR room significantly.

Will it work? Will find out quickly if the pro scouting abilities of the new GM and his staff are any good.

He's in the top 5 to 10 for contested catches since he's been in the league.

_________________
Be well

GO BEARS!!!

Can't blame the Bears one bit, huge upside if it works out.

_________________
2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

You deserve better - convert and we'll ignore your past cheesehead sins.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Hawg is one of the good ones. He is one of the stinky ones as well, but a good one.

_________________

Go Pack!!!

_________________
2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

Hawg sucks and should be banned.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

_________________
2018
#ExtendLafleur
10 More Wins

#10.. not a lucky number here, Mitch curse

_________________

Mitch was his guy. He'll have far more success with the number.

_________________
Be well

GO BEARS!!!

I know we see huge receiver with a big catch radius and think he is great at 50/50 passes but the guy really has a low catch percentage for his attributes. It did jump noticeably this year when he wasn't on the outside and presumably worked the area where passes are more contested. Still, the Bears are going to be using him on the outside, where he is only catching about 56%. Maybe I'm just looking at it superficially and the % is being dragged down by those much less sure deep passes. Mooney has the same kind of numbers when he started to be scheduled for deeper throws.

I'm excited either way. I think we are going to be able to point to this move in two years as a big moment of change.

_________________
O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

This is exactly what the columnist from Pitt who was on the Mully and Haugh Show was saying today.

_________________
An unjust law is no law at all--St. Augustine of Hippo

Cause tried and true
I see the light in you
Oh, can you dig in my soul?
Could you smell my whole...
life?--Gener and Deaner