Chase Claypool Rumors: Teams Feel Bears Will Release WR from Contract amid Trade Buzz

There has been some confusion within the Chicago Bears organization about what happened with Chase Claypool in Week 4, but it seems apparent his tenure with the organization will be ending sooner than later.

Per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, some teams around the NFL believe Claypool will end up being released by the Bears. The Notre Dame alum is in the final season of his rookie contract and has a $2.993 million base salary in 2023.

Claypool was a healthy inactive on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. Head coach Matt Eberflus told reporters afterward they gave the 25-year-old wide receiver a choice to attend the game or stay home, "and he's at home right now."

A Bears spokesman later told Adam Jahns of The Athletic the team asked Claypool to stay home. The decision came after Claypool told reporters on Friday he didn't feel like the team was putting him in the best position to succeed in the offense:

NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported Bears general manager Ryan Poles "has been actively calling teams he believes are in the market for a receiver" with the hope of trading him for a fifth- or sixth-round draft pick.

Poles said on Thursday that he believes Claypool will "learn from this situation" and also wished the wideout luck moving forward:

Whatever the end result turns out to be, Chicago's decision to acquire Claypool has been a complete mess. The team sent a second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers to bring him in on Nov. 1, 2022.

The pick wound up being the No. 32 overall selection that the Steelers used to take Penn State cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

If Claypool doesn't appear in another game for the Bears, he will finish his tenure with the club having caught 18 passes for 191 yards and one touchdown in 10 appearances.

Claypool was a second-round draft pick (No. 49 overall) by the Steelers in 2020. He has 2,406 yards from scrimmage and 15 total touchdowns in 49 career games.