Bears Make WR Chase Claypool A Healthy Scratch In Week 4, Actively Trying To Trade Him
6:00pm: There are conflicting reports coming out of Chicago this afternoon following the team’s crushing loss to the previously 0-3 Broncos. According to ESPN’s Courtney Cronin, head coach Matt Eberflus told the media that the decision for Claypool not to attend “today’s game after being made inactive was the wide receiver’s choice,” insinuating that the Bears didn’t instruct the beleaguered player to stay away.
Another source, Adam Jahns of The Athletic, provided an updated report later in the afternoon that a team spokesperson clarified the opposite claim, explaining that the Bears did, in fact, ask Claypool to stay home, away from the game, today.
There is clearly an extreme amount of tension building between the two parties, creating a schism that is starting to seem impossible to span. Eberflus claimed that he anticipates seeing Claypool back in the building tomorrow, but it’s unclear if the two sides will be able to come to a working agreement.
11:45am: Poles is actively trying to trade Claypool, as NFL insider Jordan Schultz reports. Poles is calling teams he believes may be in the market for a receiver and is looking for a fifth- or sixth-round pick in return.
11:06am: The Bears have made wide receiver Chase Claypool a healthy scratch for their Week 4 game against the Broncos (Ian Rapoport of NFL.com first reported the team’s plan to make Claypool inactive). Fellow wideout Equanimeous St. Brown, on the heels of a strong week of practice, will be active for the first time in 2023.
This represents another low in a disappointing Chicago tenure for Claypool. The former second-round pick of the Steelers, who was a focal point of Pittsburgh’s offense over the 2020-21 campaigns, was shipped to the Bears in advance of last year’s trade deadline in exchange for what turned out to be the No. 32 overall pick of the 2023 draft (which the Steelers used to selected Joey Porter Jr.).
Bears GM Ryan Poles added Claypool in an effort to surround quarterback Justin Fields with more receiving talent, an effort that continued with this offseason’s acquisition of D.J. Moore. However, in the 10 games that Claypool has played for Chicago, he has amassed just 18 catches for 191 yards and one touchdown.
As Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times details, Claypool was criticized by his coaches and teammates for not showing enough effort in the Bears’ 2023 regular season opener against the Packers. Prior to the club’s Week 2 game versus the Bucs, Poles said that he expected Claypool to make changes.
“And if he doesn’t,” Poles said, “then we’ll have to figure out what we’re going to do after that.”
While Claypool exhibited better effort in that matchup with Tampa Bay, catching three balls for 36 yards and a score, he caught just one pass for 15 yards in the Bears’ Week 3 drubbing at the hands of the Chiefs despite playing in 86% of the team’s offensive snaps. To be fair, the Kansas City loss was nightmarish for the entire team, but Claypool has obviously fallen out of the good graces of his coaching staff.
Claypool is likewise not too fond of the staff at the moment. When asked this past week if he believed he was being put in the best position to succeed, the Notre Dame product paused for seven seconds before saying, “no.”
“Obviously, there’s other places,” Claypool added. “You can say, ‘Oh, I want to be on the best offense with the highest passing yards,’ but that doesn’t happen in football. You just have to make do with what you’ve got.”
As Finley notes, it is unclear whether Claypool knew that he was being benched when he made those comments, or if the comments contributed to his benching. Either way, it is not a good look for a contract-year player to be scratched by a team that is desperate for offensive production. It is fair to wonder if the Bears will seek to move Claypool at this year’s deadline, though they will obviously not come close to recouping their own investment in him if they do put him on the block.
In related news, the Bears are elevating Tyson Bagent to the QB2 role behind Fields, according to Rapoport. Bagent, an undrafted free agent out of D-II Shepherd University, had an impressive summer and was rumored to be in the running for the backup job when the season got underway. While Chicago installed veteran Nathan Peterman as Fields’ clipboard holder for the first few weeks of the campaign, Bagent has done enough to merit a promotion.
Rapoport made it clear that the move does not impact Fields’ standing with the team.
Deshaun Watson Will Not Play In Week 4
Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will not play in the team’s Week 4 game against the Ravens, as Josina Anderson of CBS Sports reports. Watson is dealing with a right shoulder contusion, and while player and team hoped that he would be able to play through the injury, that will not be the case.
Watson struggled through the first two games of the 2023 season, but in Week 3, he looked like the Pro Bowler the Browns believed they were getting when they made the now-infamous decision to trade a king’s ransom for the embattled quarterback and hand him a fully-guaranteed five-year, $230MM contract in March 2022. In Cleveland’s 27-3 romp over the Titans last week, Watson completed 27 of 33 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns.
As James Palmer of the NFL Network notes, Watson did not throw much in practice this week as he attempted to rest his shoulder. During today’s pregame warmup and throwing session, it became clear that he was not healthy enough to suit up.
Fifth-round rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson will get the nod in Watson’s absence, and he will be tasked with leading the team in an important divisional matchup. The Browns had initially planned to have Josh Dobbs serve as Watson’s backup this year, but when the QB-needy Cardinals made an “out-of-the-blue” trade offer for Dobbs at the end of August, Cleveland decided to pull the trigger on the trade and elevate Thompson-Robinson to the QB2 role.
Obviously, that decision indicated that the Browns were comfortable with Thompson-Robinson being called into action in his first professional season. Thompson-Robinson justified that faith with a strong preseason in which he completed 37 of 58 passes for two touchdowns and added 14 carries for 69 yards.
Although he did not always look like an NFL prospect during his collegiate career at UCLA, Thompson-Robinson put himself on the radar during his final season with the Bruins, completing just under 70% of his passes and throwing for 27 TDs against 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 645 yards and 12 touchdowns while maintaining a healthy 5.5 yards-per-carry rate.
DTR will at least have Cleveland’s top tight end at his disposal. After suffering burns to his face and arm during a household accident this week, David Njoku is expected to play against Baltimore.
The Browns have a Week 5 bye, and given that they were optimistic Watson would play this week, it seems reasonable to expect Watson to take the field against the 49ers in Week 6. However, it is obviously too early for the team to make that call.
Saints QB Derek Carr To Start In Week 4
Derek Carr will be back under center for the Saints in the club’s Week 4 contest against the Buccaneers today, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com first reported that New Orleans’ QB1 had a good chance to play.
Carr, who signed a four-year, $150MM contract with the Saints in March shortly after his tenure with the Raiders came to an end, had guided his new team to a 2-0 record and a 17-0 lead in its Week 3 tilt with the Packers before sustaining a shoulder injury in the third quarter of that game. After Carr’s departure, backup Jameis Winston completed 10 of 16 passes for 101 yards, but the Saints were unable to add to their point total, and Green Bay rallied for an 18-17 win.
To be clear, New Orleans’ top-10 defense has been the primary catalyst for its 2-0 (and nearly 3-0) start. During his first two-and-a-half games in a Saints uniform, Carr has posted a mediocre 85.2 quarterback rating, completing roughly 65% of his throws for two TDs against two interceptions.
Still, the team will doubtlessly be happy to have its marquee offseason acquisition back in the fold, especially in light of the disappointing loss to the Packers. Carr, who was diagnosed with a sprained AC joint, has taken first-team reps in practice over the past two days and will suit up as long as the coaching staff believes he will be able to protect himself.
Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, who covered the Bucs during Winston’s five-year run with the club, recalled a time when Winston was dealing with an AC joint injury of his own. As Stroud notes, it will be interesting to see whether Carr, in his first game after suffering the injury, turns down open looks because he lacks the arm strength and/or confidence to make the throw.
Luckily for Carr, he will have running back Alvin Kamara back in the fold to handle short tosses out of the backfield and to otherwise take some pressure off of the passing game. Kamara will make his 2023 debut after serving a three-game suspension to start the season.
Raiders To Start Aidan O’Connell At Quarterback In Week 4
The Raiders are expected to start fourth-round rookie Aidan O’Connell at quarterback in their Week 4 matchup with the division-rival Chargers, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com first reported that Las Vegas was leaning in that direction.
Offseason acquisition Jimmy Garoppolo completed the team’s Week 3 loss to the Steelers, though he sustained a concussion during that contest and went into the league’s concussion protocol. He was not able to clear the protocol in time for today’s game against the Bolts, leaving head coach Josh McDaniels with an interesting choice to make.
The Raiders also signed soon-to-be 38-year-old Brian Hoyer in free agency and guaranteed over $4MM of his two-year contract. Hoyer has dressed as Garoppolo’s backup in each of the first three games of the 2023 campaign and has started 40 games in his NFL career, the most recent of which came just last season. However, it has been seven years since Hoyer last won a game that he started, and McDaniels declined to confirm that the veteran would fill in for Garoppolo if necessary.
O’Connell had an impressive preseason, completing 43 of 62 passes for 482 yards and three TDs over Las Vegas’ three-game slate, which led many to believe that he would overtake Hoyer on the depth chart sooner rather than later. The Chargers may represent something of a soft landing for him, as Los Angeles is giving up a league-worst 337 passing yards per game over the first three weeks of the regular season.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter points out that Hoyer and O’Connell both took reps in practice during the early part of last week, but by the end of the week, O’Connell was taking most, if not all, of the reps.
“I think the preseason was valuable for me at the time, just to get out there and play and get it under my belt,” O’Connell said. “But I think at this point it’s pretty far gone and it’s different teams and different schemes and different game plans for us. So I’m happy it happened, but it’s time to move on, I think, and see what happens.”
The Raiders and Chargers are both 1-2 and are looking to keep pace with the 2-1 Chiefs in the AFC West.
Jets Have Contacted Only Chad Henne, Colt McCoy; Latest On Aaron Rodgers’ Recovery
The Jets are 1-1 and reeling from Aaron Rodgers‘ Achilles injury, which ended the future Hall of Famer’s season after four snaps and thrust Zach Wilson back into the starting lineup. We heard in the immediate aftermath of the Rodgers news that New York was exploring the free agent market for veteran passers and had inquired on retired QB Chad Henne.
Dianna Russini of The Athletic (subscription required) confirms that the Jets have indeed reached out to Henne, who has rebuffed their overtures. “The timing doesn’t work,” Henne said.
Gang Green has also contacted Colt McCoy, who was released by the Cardinals on cutdown day and who was mentioned as a possible Jets target several days ago. McCoy, 37, indicated that he has several offers in hand and expects to sign with a club shortly. He had been dealing with an elbow injury, though he should be ready to play this week.
The Jets told both Henne and McCoy that if they were to sign with the team, they would be doing so with the understanding that Wilson is the starter. As a team source told Russini, “[w]e have Zach. Zach Wilson is our best option.”
Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett was pleased with what Wilson was able to do when he was forced to enter the team’s Week 1 contest against the Bills in relief of Rodgers, and Hackett was also impressed by the progress Wilson made throughout the spring and summer. Wilson appears to have earned the trust of the locker room, with another team source telling Russini that Wilson’s character is “off the charts.” The team has changed “about half of the game plan” to play to Wilson’s strengths, including an overall simplification of the offense.
The organizational view on Wilson explains why, as Russini reports, the Jets have no plans to pursue a more accomplished signal-caller like Tom Brady, Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, or Joe Flacco (Blake Bortles is reportedly not under consideration either). As Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com report, Brady’s purchase of a stake in the Raiders is not yet finalized and is unlikely to be finalized until October at the earliest. Until then, Brady can techincally sign with any team he chooses, but as we noted previously, he continues to insist that he will remain retired.
Rich Cimini of ESPN.com suggests that the Jets, who have the league’s most difficult strength of schedule over the next five games, could reassess the situation over their Week 7 bye. If they are still in playoff position but feel Wilson is holding them back, they could expand their QB search at that time.
Rodgers, of course, has not closed the door on an in-season return. The reason for such optimism, as Rapoport and Pelissero explain in a separate piece, is that Rodgers underwent an innovative surgery to accelerate the rehabilitation process.
The NFL.com duo, building on an earlier report from Russini and The Athletic colleague Jourdan Rodrigue (subscription required), say that a type of internal brace called a “speed bridge” was placed on Rodgers’ torn Achilles. The procedure, which was performed by well-known orthopedic surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache, could allow Rodgers to be back on the field right around the time the postseason begins.
The procedure does involve risk, but Rodgers determined that the possibility of helping his new club make a playoff run this season was worth taking a chance. The 39-year-old (40 in December) could also receive platelet-rich plasma injections to move his recovery along.
Texans WR John Metchie III Active For Week 2 Matchup With Colts
Texans wide receiver John Metchie III is active for the team’s Week 2 game against the Colts today. As such, the 2022 second-rounder will finally make his regular season debut.
It has been a long road for Metchie. The rebuilding Houston franchise selected the Alabama product, a first-round talent, with the No. 44 overall pick in last year’s draft as something of a buy-low maneuver. Although the team knew that Metchie, who suffered a torn ACL in the SEC title game in December 2021, would not be ready for the start of his rookie campaign, there was hope that he would be able to suit up at some point in 2022 and begin to provide a return on the Texans’ investment.
Sadly, Metchie with diagnosed with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia last July, at which point it became clear he would miss all of 2022. He progressed enough in his recovery to participate in the Texans’ offseason program this year, though a hamstring strain prevented him from getting much OTA work. And while Metchie was able to see preseason action, the hamstring issue kept him out of last week’s regular season opener against the Ravens.
With his health issues hopefully in the rearview mirror, Metchie will try to begin capitalizing on his vast potential. Now 23, Metchie put himself on the draft radar with a pair of productive seasons with the Crimson Tide in 2020 and ’21. Across that span, he totaled 151 catches, 2,058 yards, and 14 touchdowns.
Although Houston dropped its Week 1 bout, the defense and rookie QB C.J. Stroud showed some promise. With Metchie and fellow pass catchers like Nico Collins, Tank Dell, and Xavier Hutchinson, to go along with second-year running back Dameon Pierce, the Texans hope they have a young core of skill position talent to build upon.
As of the time of this writing, Metchie has not yet recorded a catch in the matchup with Indianapolis.
Raiders DE Chandler Jones: Mark Davis Is Holding A “Huge Secret”
The odd situation between Chandler Jones and the Raiders does not appear to be any closer to a resolution. On September 15, the edge defender posted a tweet indicating that the team has not yet contacted him or his reps, though just last week he posted to his Instagram account what appears to be a text exchange between him and Raiders owner Mark Davis (via Tashan Reed of The Athletic).
To recap, in the days leading up to Las Vegas’ regular season opener, Jones posted a series of angry messages to his Instagram account alleging that the Raiders locked him out of the team facility, thereby forcing him to work out at a local gym. In those since-deleted posts, he went on say that he could not get in touch with either head coach Josh McDaniels or general manager Dave Ziegler and no longer wanted to play for the club as long as McDaniels and Ziegler remain in charge.
Then, in another round of social media posts that he later deleted, Jones — who missed several practices towards the end of training camp for undisclosed reasons — said that the Raiders had sent a member of the Las Vegas crisis response team to his home. The CRT member allegedly told Jones that he was in danger and needed to go with her.
Speculation has swirled that Jones is dealing with a mental health matter, though there has been no confirmation in that regard. The organization has, unsurprisingly, declined to comment about the situation.
In a new string of tweets, at least some of which have been deleted, Jones spoke more directly about Davis.
“I wish mark Davis told the ppl why I really can’t play,” Jones said (as relayed by Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). “I think I know why, but I want y’all to ask him. I’ll let him say it to the public not me lmao. I wish I could play with my brothers, but marky mark is holding a huge secret that only I know! That’s why I was asking for my protection sorry if I sound scared because I’m not lol, when I found out I was lol.”
It is unclear what secret Jones is referring to, or what information he discovered. In the above-referenced text exchange, the only substantive portion of Davis’ dialogue read, “I care for you the person more than I care for you the player.. I’m here for you should you feel the need to talk.. Man to man.. With respect..”
Jones was inactive for the Raiders’ Week 1 victory over the Broncos and is also inactive for today’s matchup with the Bills. At this point, it is difficult to say when (or even if) Jones will hit the field again.
In his most recent tweets, Jones added, “[Davis] can’t cut me, I have proof of his reps saying I’m under contract, and they want me on the team.. but not playing right now. Lol.”
Indeed, if the Raiders were to release Jones, they would be saddled with a dead money charge of roughly $13MM (though as a post-June 1 transaction, such a release would actually yield a modest cap savings on the 2023 ledger). Presumably, Las Vegas would like for Jones to return to action and try to live up to the three-year, $51MM contract he signed last offseason, a deal that looks like a signficiant misstep given the current impasse and Jones’ disappointing 2022 campaign.
It is fair to wonder if the NFLPA will become involved in this matter, particulary in light of Jones’ accusations against Davis.
Falcons Clinch 2024 Fourth-Round Pick In Calvin Ridley Trade
Last November, in the midst of wide receiver Calvin Ridley‘s year-long gambling suspension, the Falcons traded Ridley to the Jaguars in exchange for a two-pick package comprised of one 2023 and one 2024 selection. As Ridley was reinstated prior to this year’s draft, Atlanta received Jacksonville’s 2023 fifth-round choice, which it subsequently flipped to the Lions in exchange for cornerback Jeff Okudah.
The 2024 selection was originally reported as a conditional fourth-rounder, and the Falcons have clinched at least that level of compensation given that Ridley was on the Jaguars’ 53-man roster after last month’s cutdown day and subsequently suited up for the team’s Week 1 contest against the Colts. However, the pot could continue to get sweeter for Atlanta.
As ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports, the fourth-round pick will become a third-rounder if Ridley plays at least 60% of the Jaguars’ offensive snaps or records either 75 receptions or 1,000 receiving yards. The Falcons will receive a second-round pick if Ridley — who is presently playing on the fifth-year option of his rookie deal, which tolled to 2023 due to his suspension — signs an extension with Jacksonville.
Schefter notes that contract talks between Ridley and the Jags will not commence until the end of the season, so it will be a while before we know whether the Falcons will end up with a second-round choice. However, Ridley recorded eight catches (on 11 targets) for 101 yards and a score in his Jacksonville debut, so as long as he stays healthy, it seems he will have an excellent shot at securing at least a 2024 third-round pick for his former club.
The Jags are presumably content to pay that price as long as Ridley continues to perform at a high level. In his last full season in 2020, the former first-rounder set career-highs in catches (90) and receiving yards (1,374), and he makes an already-talented Jacksonville offense even more formidable.
A healthy and productive season will allow Ridley to take advantage of a booming wide receiver market in 2024, whether he re-signs with the Jags or finds a more lucrative deal elsewhere.
Colts Likely To Resume Jonathan Taylor Trade Talks; Packers No Longer Involved
The Colts had reportedly set August 29 — the day when teams were required to finalize their 53-man rosters — as the deadline to trade running back Jonathan Taylor. It was clear, however, that roster cutdown day was merely a “loose” deadline that was set in the hopes of expeditiously resolving a difficult situation for a maximum return.
Unsurprisingly, trade talks involving Taylor are likely to resume, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Taylor is presently on the PUP list and is therefore required to miss the first four games of the season, but sources tell Rapoport and ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Taylor is healthy and could pass a physical today if he were required to do so. As such, the contract-year back plans to be ready to play as soon as Week 5, when he is first eligible to take the field.
According to Rapoport, there remains a possibility that Taylor will again suit up for the Colts, but the odds of that happening are slim. After all, the rift between player and team formed when Indianapolis refused Taylor’s request for an extension this offseason, and there is nothing to indicate that the club’s stance in that regard will change.
Instead, it seems more plausible that Taylor will be traded. In order for that to happen, the Colts may need to reduce their asking price, which was reportedly either a first-round pick or a package similar to what the 49ers paid for Christian McCaffrey last year. During their trade talks with the Dolphins, Indy is believed to have asked about Miami wideout Jaylen Waddle, and Schefter notes that the team targeted promising second-year receiver Christian Watson in its conversations with the Packers (via ESPN’s Stephen Holder).
Rapoport writes that Green Bay offered two mid-round picks in exchange for Taylor — for whom it was willing to authorize a top-of-the-market contract — though he says the club is now out of the running. The Dolphins, who were also prepared to pay top dollar for Taylor, remain a viable landing spot. As the first few weeks of the season unfold, of course, it is also quite possible that other clubs will enter the mix.
The Bears and Broncos were rumored as potential suitors at the end of last month. This year’s trade deadline is October 31.
Free Agent CB Casey Hayward Medically Cleared
Veteran cornerback Casey Hayward signed a two-year contract with the Falcons during the 2022 offseason but played just six games for the club before suffering a shoulder injury that ended his first season in Atlanta prematurely. Shortly after the Falcons swung a trade for former No. 3 overall pick Jeff Okudah in April, the club released Hayward with a failed physical designation.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, Hayward has received full medical clearance and is ready to take part in his 12th NFL season. As of the time of this writing, there has been no reported interest in his services, but once Week 1 is in the books, that could change.
As a vested veteran, Hayward’s full 2023 salary would have been guaranteed if he were on an active roster for Week 1. Since that will not be the case, an interested club could sign him for what would likely be a modest sum and, if necessary, release him with minimal financial ramifications.
Given Hayward’s track record and the league-wide need for cornerback help, it would be fair to expect Hayward to find a new employer soon. In his last full season in 2021, Hayward started all 17 of the Raiders’ regular season contests, recording 46 tackles and nine passes defensed. Pro Football Focus considered him a top-15 corner that year, and he parlayed that performance into the above-referenced deal with Atlanta.
The Packers draftee, who just turned 34 yesterday, is unlikely to return to the elite form he exhibited during his peak years with the Chargers. During his five-year tenure with the Bolts from 2016-2020, Hayward earned two Pro Bowl nods, and he led the league with seven interceptions in 2016.
Still, Hayward yielded a meager 80.7 QB rating on passes thrown in his direction during his brief time with the Falcons last year, making it clear that he has something left in the tank. Even if he were to be deployed on more of a rotational basis, he could certainly be an asset to any number of CB depth charts.