Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan has shown one thing since taking over in his position in May: a willingness to be aggressive. It’s already showing to be a different approach than Steelers fans are used to, as former GM Kevin Colbert took the old school approach throughout his tenure. That is, hold onto your draft picks and build through the draft.
Khan began his tenure by immediately signing safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to a well-worth contract extension. This week, with the trade deadline on Tuesday, Khan made two trades. Chase Claypool has failed to take a step forward after his impressive rookie season, resulting in the WR being a hot topic of trade rumors in the past few weeks.
Claypool did end up being traded on Tuesday, as he was sent to the Chicago Bears. It was quite a bold move by Khan considering the team doesn’t really have any proven wide receiver options beyond Diontae Johnson and George Pickens. The Bears offered their own second-round draft pick though, which was just too good to pass up. That will likely become a top-40 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which would likely give the Steelers three picks of that kind.
As you probably know, Claypool was a highly criticized player in Pittsburgh over the past year. A lot of his antics, particularly last season, seemed to stem from a lack of maturity. This season though, he made strides in that aspect. His play was getting better over the last few weeks as well. Recently, the third-year wideout mentioned his frustrations with the playcalling, specifically the lack of deep balls.
With him now in Chicago, it was going to be quite interesting to hear his first comments on his time in Pittsburgh. On Wednesday, just a day after being traded, Claypool spoke to the media in Chicago. This is what he had to say:
“I’m a playmaker and I’m excited to make plays. I feel like I didn’t have the full opportunity to show what I can do this year, but I think I’ve been able to show that in the past,” Claypool said via the Bears website. “I mean, I think I tried a new position this year in the slot. I was outside for my first two years.”
Claypool became the third wide receiver in Pittsburgh with the pick and emergence of the rookie, Pickens. If you include tight end Pat Freiermuth , he was the fourth option in the passing game. That was in an offense that is just 24th in the NFL in passing yards per game. Claypool’s production immensely as a result, as he averaged just 38.9 receiving yards in eight games. After nine touchdowns in his rookie year, he has just three receiving TDs since.
With JuJu Smith-Schuster leaving in free agency this past off-season, the Steelers had a hole in the slot. They opted to move their big, talented wide receiver to the slot in the form of Claypool. It remains to be seen whether he’s better on the outside or the slot, but it seems he will return to his natural position in Chicago. All in all, it was a move that was the best for both sides. There should be no ill will toward Claypool’s comments, as he didn’t say anything negative about Pittsburgh.
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