Bears receiver Chase Claypool knows what’s at stake in the final year of his rookie contract.
“It’s the biggest year of my life, and I understand that,” he said Wednesday after the Bears’ first day of training camp. “If anybody thinks my work ethic isn’t matching that, they’re deeply mistaken.
“I get motivated and motivated and motivated. It keeps building on top of each other. My work ethic grows from last year, it will grow after this year. I learn from things. I’m always growing, just like everybody in the room should be. They should always grow from their mistakes. The goal is the same. At the end of the day, it’s to win football games. My contract year aside, I want to win football games.”
It’s a big year for the Bears, too. They need to figure out Justin Fields’ future, and strong play of their wide receivers will only give them a clearer picture of what the quarterback can do. They’re coming off the worst record in the NFL.
Claypool, who was recovering from soft tissue injuries that kept him out of mandatory minicamp, was put on the physically unable to perform list Sunday was taken off of it just 24 hours later. He said he never considered his status changed. Claypool participated in the Bears’ first training camp practice Wednesday.
Claypool hurt his knee in his first game against the Packers and was limited the rest of the season. He said Wednesday that his knee injury was not the cause for the PUP trip, but didn’t elaborate further.
The Bears traded a second-round pick to the Steelers on Nov. 1 for Claypool, who struggled mightily in his half-season with the team.
