Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Update: Chase Claypool, WR PIT

Levi Chappell Posted On June 7, 2020

The NFL Draft is behind us, rookie drafts are taking place, and as dynasty owners, we are looking ahead to the upcoming season. In the Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Update series, we break down all the incoming fantasy-relevant rookies, looking at their profile and where they fit.

Name: Chase Claypool

Position: Wide receiver

Pro Team: Pittsburgh Steelers

College Team: Notre Dame

Draft Status: Round two, 49th overall

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

COMBINE REVIEW

Height: 6’4”
Weight: 229 pounds
Arm Length: 32 1/2”
Hands: 9.88”
40-yard dash: 4.42 seconds
Bench press: 19 reps
Vertical jump: 40 1/2’’
Broad jump: 126’’
Three-cone: N/A
20-yard shuttle: N/A

STRENGTHS

Size, speed, athleticism, “freak”
Thrives in physical matchups
Uses body position well for contested catches
Large catch radius
Finds the opening in zones
Dominates off-man coverage
Wins vertical routes

WEAKNESSES

Struggled against press coverage
Below-average agility
Doesn’t make many catches outside his frame
Lacks sharp route-running skills

OPPORTUNITIES

The first positive is that the Steelers selected Claypool with a middle second-round pick when WR was not high on their “needs” list. That means that they really wanted and coveted him, which can bode well for a rookie.

With Ben Roethlisberger back, the passing attack should be back to full capacity, and Claypool figures to play an important role in the red zone with his size. He will likely compete with James Washington for the WR3 spot, with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson likely to own the two starting spots. I could see Claypool unseating Washington early on, and carving out a role in the offense.

THREATS

Trust and playing time/competition are the two main threats to Claypool success. If he is unable to overtake Washington as the WR3, he could struggle to find the field and may play more on special teams than anything else.

With a limited off-season, a threat may arise of not being able to put in the reps with Roethlisberger. Veteran quarterbacks want to be able to trust their receivers and know what they will be doing on the field. If Claypool isn’t able to develop that chemistry with his quarterback, it could pose a problem come kickoff time.

Claypool will most likely be used in the red zone due to his unique size and physical makeup. However, the Steelers did sign Eric Ebron – who has been an effective red-zone target in the past – which could possibly eat into Claypool’s opportunity.

SHORT-TERM EXPECTATIONS

Like many rookies, I would temper the short-term expectations for Claypool. He has to fight to get into the formation, and even if he does, this limited off-season is working against all rookies. I believe Claypool is an all-around better player than Washington, and should eventually start in three wide receiver formations, but no one knows how long that could take.

LONG-TERM EXPECTATIONS

This is where the upside for Claypool comes through. I love his long-term outlook for quite a few reasons. The first is the contract uncertainty between the Steelers and Smith-Schuster. There is a legitimate chance that he is not back with the Steelers in 2021 which could open up a starting job and vacate a ton of targets. This means that if Claypool could unseat Washington, he could go from WR4 and barely seeing the field, to a starter… in one year.

The other reason is that Claypool has a unique size/speed combo. This makes him an interesting dynasty option because he possesses a lot of potential and upside. We just have to wait and see if he is able to turn that into on-field success.

NFL PLAYER COMPARISON

Claypool reminds me of a mix between two players and one of them doesn’t even play the same position.

The first player is Vincent Jackson. Jackson was 6’5”, weighed 230 lbs and ran a 4.46-second 40-yard dash. Both use their large body and size well and are able to exploit their above-average speed/size to their advantage.

The other player Claypool reminds me of is tight end Evan Engram. Engram is 6’3”, entered the league weighing 234 lbs, and ran a 4.42 40 … the exact same time as Claypool.

If Claypool pans out to the level of either of these players, dynasty owners should be very happy.

PROJECTED ROOKIE DRAFT RANGE

According to DLF’s Rookie ADP, Claypool is being drafted around the backend of the second round, or early third. His average draft position is 25.6 and he is the 12th wide receiver being selected.

With a player being drafted in the third round, expectations should be very low… with that said, not many third-rounders possess the athleticism or overall physical makeup that Claypool does. He could make a significant impact one year from now, and is well worth a late second or early third pick in drafts.

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Levi Chappell

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

Fueled by coffee, Levi spends most of his days in the real estate industry. When not in the real estate world, he is engulfed in dynasty and other sports. When other kids were playing with lincoln logs and legos, Levi was reading sports almanacs... for fun. "Too much fantasy" is not in his vocabulary.