Steelers Chase Claypool swooped up in first round of 2022 NFL re-draft

Chase Claypool has been up and down, but here’s why the Steelers receiver still gets snatched up in the first round of Pro Football Focus’s 2020 NFL re-draft.

Chase Claypool has been making headlines during the downtime of the NFL calendar year. The former second-round pick went on record saying that he believes he’s currently a top-3 wide receiver in the NFL.

Fans that followed the NFL closely last season probably have a much different opinion, but I can’t blame him for being confident. While he may not be anywhere near a top-3 player at his position, perhaps he can be a bit closer than we give him credit for.

Recently, Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus re-drafted the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft class. Despite Claypool falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second round the first time around (pick 49 overall), PFF has the athletic receiver jumping way up in this re-draft and being selected with the 21st overall pick in the first round by the Philadelphia Eagles.

Here’s what Linsey had to say about the decision to slot Claypool to the Eagles in the first round of the 2020 re-draft:

"21. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: WR CHASE CLAYPOOLOriginal pick: WR JALEN REAGORPhiladelphia was looking for a downfield threat when it drafted Reagor, but the first-round pick out of TCU has averaged fewer than one receiving yard per route run across his first two NFL seasons. Claypool would provide the Eagles with a more productive vertical threat who has size, as he’s listed at 6-foot-4 and 227 pounds.Claypool has averaged over 14 yards per reception while tallying 18 catches on throws 20-plus yards downfield (tied for 11th in NFL) since 2020. That’s made more impressive by the fact that he was catching passes from Ben Roethlisberger, whose ability to push the ball downfield effectively was failing him late in his career."

The Eagles originally picked TCU receiver Jalen Reagor in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, but Reagor has been a big disappointment to date. Instead, the Eagles opt for a big, athletic receiver with some consistency issues in Chase Claypool.

Linsey points to Claypool’s impressive 14 yards per reception and 18 plays of 20-plus yards down the field. He also notes that Claypool did this while dealing with the questionable target quality and lackluster arm of an aging Ben Roethlisberger.

Should Steelers WR go this high in re-draft?

There are certainly some mixed opinions on Chase Claypool and many Steelers fans will even argue that he doesn’t deserve to be a mid-first-round pick in an NFL re-draft. However, when you consider the other names below him on this list, it’s not terribly hard to understand why he was slotted to the Eagles with the 21st overall pick.

Philadelphia was desperate for WR help at this point. At the time of the draft, there were a few other receiver options that would have been enticing. Justin Jefferson was one of them. However, he unsurprisingly is off the board with the 3rd overall pick by the Detroit Lions in this re-draft after two phenomenal seasons to start his NFL career.

Likewise, Tee Higgins and Michael Pittman both went in the top-12 picks of this re-draft and weren’t options for the Eagles. You could make a case that Claypool was the best of the rest.

Jerry Jeudy — who was originally the 15th overall pick by the Broncos — has been both injured and inefficient early in his career. Jeudy was also arrested and charged with a misdemeanor second-degree criminal tampering with a domestic violence enhancer during the 2022 offseason.

Pro Football Focus also has Claypool being drafted ahead of some flashy young receivers like Darnell Mooney and Gabriel Davis — both of whom cracked the first round in the re-draft.

Meanwhile, despite shaky QB play, Claypool has been able to manage 121 receptions, 1,733 receiving yards, and 11 touchdowns in his first two seasons, via Pro Football Reference. His 8.1 yards per target, considering the circumstances, is actually a pretty impressive number.

Based on what we know about the 2020 draft class two years later, I think it’s fair to slot Chase Claypool somewhere in the late first round. While I don’t think I personally would be willing to take him with the 21st overall pick, we saw a lot from him as a rookie, and Steelers fans are hopeful that the arrow will be pointed up soon.