The Buffalo Bills have released Canadian receiver Chase Claypool with an injury settlement and is now a free agent. He reportedly missed most of training camp with a toe injury.
The native of Abbotsford, B.C. signed with the team as a free agent in May, one month after the Saskatchewan Roughriders added him to their exclusive negotiation list.
Claypool was a second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2020 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame. He exploded onto the scene as a rookie, catching 62 passes for 873 yards and scoring 11 total touchdowns, becoming the fourth receiver in NFL history to score 10 touchdowns in his first 10 career games.
The six-foot-four, 238-pound target had a solid second season with the Steelers in 2021, making 59 receptions for 860 yards and two touchdowns, though his relationship with the team appeared to sour from there. He got off to a slow start in 2022 and was traded to the Chicago Bears in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Claypool dressed for seven games with the Bears but struggled to make an impact, catching 14 passes for 140 yards. He was traded again in 2023 to the Miami Dolphins, this time for a sixth-round pick. In South Florida, he caught four passes for 26 yards and wasn’t retained ahead of free agency.
The 26-year-old has recorded 175 receptions for 2,261 yards and 13 touchdowns and ran the ball 33 times for 171 yards and two touchdowns over 58 career NFL regular season games with the Steelers, Bears, and Dolphins, earning over $8 million USD.
