The Claypool Trade Looks Better Everyday
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
In the NFL trade world, fans and media alike are obsessed with the concept of “winning.” From the moment the deal is executed who won and why is all anybody talks about. The reality is that time usually settles these debates. As another NFL season dawns, let’s take a look at where the Pittsburgh Steelers decision to move Chase Claypool stands.
Claypool, a Notre Dame alum who was selected with the 49th-overall pick in the second-round of the 2020 draft, had some good games in black and gold (including a four-touchdown performance in Week 5 during his rookie season), but he never quite materialized into the gamebreaker the franchise hoped he’d become.
The Chicago Bears made the trade at the deadline, intent on adding another offensive weapon to situate around quarterback Justin Fields. The Steelers were happy to oblige. In return, Pittsburgh received Chicago’s 2023 second-round pick. From there, Chicago’s tanking became Pittsburgh’s best friend.
The Bears would lose each of their nine remaining games to finish out the season. Claypool led the team in receiving yards in only one of those games and finished with just 144 total yards in seven games played. Then he ended up missing most of mandatory minicamp and OTAs this summer with injury issues.
While the Bears were busy plummeting to the bottom of the league, the Steelers were surging. Pittsburgh went 7-2 the rest of the year. Kenny Pickett and the offense improved, while 2022 second-round pick George Pickens began to blossom as a target for the rookie signal caller.
The second-round pick the Steelers received from Chicago ended up being the top pick of the round — incredible value for a single player who the Steelers had already pretty much replaced with Pickens anyway. How often in the NFL does a player fail to meet expectations and then get traded for a better pick than was used to select them in the first place? I can’t think of another example. For context, to move up from the 49th pick to the 33rd pick in the draft via trade would take adding another third-round pick (the 84th overall) into the deal, according to the highly respected Jimmy Johnson Draft Value Chart.
Using that draft capital, Pittsburgh selected cornerback Joey Porter Jr. out of Penn State — a match made in heaven if there ever was one, with Porter being the son of former Steeler Joey Porter. He grew up in Pittsburgh and played at North Allegheny, yada yada. You know the backstory. He’s a hometown hero in the making.
On Tuesday, the Steelers agreed to a four-year, $9.6 million contract with Porter, with the first three years being fully guaranteed. “We’ve known Joey Jr. since he was really young, and remember him running around the facility here,” general manager Omar Khan said in an interview with Mike Florio. “It’s been great to watch him grow up. …From the football standpoint, it’s a credit to Joey. It’s a reflection of his success at Penn State and his abilities. It really has nothing to do with his parents. It’s really him and how he’s grown and become a solid football player. That’s a direct reflection of him.”
In Porter, the Steelers addressed a major position of need at cornerback, a position where they’ve struggled for several seasons. They also found a likely starter for a defense that has taken shape and looks poised to be one of the best in the league in 2023.
The NFL’s Next Gen metrics graded Porter at 81, and most scouts and evaluators rated him as the best at his position in this draft class.
Porter’s strengths as a press man-to-man cover corner are exactly what Pittsburgh needs. He’s big, long, and physical, which makes him an ideal matchup for the physical freaks at receiver around the league. His top-end speed and athleticism will also help him in that regard. And since he fell to the second round, he also has a chip on his shoulder. He’s eager to prove himself going forward.
Joey Porter Jr. working pic.twitter.com/UZz22jur8r
— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) July 29, 2023
In short, the deal currently looks like an all-out fleecing. Yes, we have to see if Porter can live up to the hype. And is there a world where Claypool comes alive in Chicago and turns into a perennial All-Pro? Perhaps. But if I were a betting man, I know which of these two situations I’d be putting my money on.
As training camp begins and plenty of shaky camera phone footage from Saint Vincent College starts rolling in, prepare for Steelers Nation to get loud. With each highlight-reel pass breakup and and drive-stopping interception by Porter, it will become clearer and clearer that the Steelers made a great move.
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