Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl champion and four-time Pro Bowler Hines Ward knows a thing or two about playing wide receiver for the storied franchise. When Ward speaks, Steelers fans listen. Well, Ward made his opinion known on former Pittsburgh wideout and current Chicago Bears receiver Chase Claypool, who drew the ire of fans for some questionable actions during his tenure. The Steelers legend said that Claypool “needs to grow up” during a recent interview with Chat Sports.
“Sometimes I think with Chase, it became more about Chase and less about the team. I think there's a little more maturing level on his part. He needs to grow up a little bit.”
Ward said that sometimes Claypool was more concerned with himself than he was with the Steelers. The Super Bowl XL MVP added that he feels the Bears wideout needs more “maturing.”
Claypool, 24, was a productive receiver during his time with the Steelers, tallying over 800 receiving yards in each of his first two seasons in the NFL.
However, he drew the ire of fans- and even Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin- for his questionable decision-making on and off the field.
After a blowout loss to the Cincinnati Bengals back in 2021, Claypool suggested the Steelers make practice more “fun” by playing music.
Article Continues BelowTomlin shot down the request. Steelers veteran Cam Heyward was furious that Claypool was more concerned with having fun than getting better on the field.
Shortly after that, Claypool foolishly celebrated a first down catch late in the game when the Steelers had no timeouts, effectively cutting short their comeback effort in the contest.
Clearly, there is some truth to what Ward is saying, based on Claypool's previous actions.
It will be up to him to figure these things out with the Bears.