Steelers enact sweet revenge on Patriots with failed Chase Claypool trade

The Pittsburgh Steelers can revel in the consequences of their failed Chase Claypool trade with their longtime AFC rival, the New England Patriots. 

Part of the reason the Steelers and Patriots have been millennial arch rivals is because these two juggernaut franchises have so much in common. Both are well-run organizations who, throughout the 2000s and 2010s, were each headlined by Hall of Fame quarterbacks. Now, both teams rank last in their respective divisions as they flail with young quarterbacks, with the Steelers starting down a 2-6 record and the Patriots lagging behind at 4-4.

Even though the Patriots were rumored to potentially ship out a wide receiver or two at the trade deadline, there’s been another fascinating rumor that has recently surfaced.

According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, the Patriots were in the running to land wide receiver Chase Claypool. But, like the Green Bay Packers, New England lost out on the Claypool sweepstakes to the Chicago Bears, who shelled out a second-round pick for the wideout.

Patriots entered into Steelers’ Chase Claypool sweepstakes before losing out to Bears

If the chatter for Claypool seems like it came out of left field, MusketFire’s Sara Marshall reminds fans that Belichick has given rare compliments to Claypool in the past.

“Before the Patriots’ matchup with the Steelers earlier this year, Belichick had a lot of positive thoughts to share on how the receiver has performed since entering the league in 2020,” Marshall noted.

With the trade deadline wrapped up, it looks like Belichick chose to play conservatively with the wideouts he fielded calls for, including Jakobi Meyers, DeVante Parker, Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne. The Patriots face less of a wide receiver deficit than the Packers, but knowing Belichick, he’s always interested in snatching up an underrated wideout for a low draft pick — look no further than the fourth-rounder for Randy Moss.

Florio describes the Patriots’ interest, but it’s interesting to wonder about why the Steelers ultimately chose the Bears over all other trading partners. They didn’t want to give Aaron Rodgers any help, so perhaps they were also not inclined to give their AFC enemy an additional boost.