Chase Claypool is ready to show his ability to play with the Bears.

LAKE FOREST – He was supposed to rest as his former team was on a bye week, but that changed Wednesday afternoon.

“Not a vacation, but definitely a little bit of a vacation, a mental reset, for sure,” Chase Claypool said of his plans for the time the Steelers were supposed to be off. “But for now, I’ll just turn my attention to the bears until I say goodbye.”

That won’t happen for another month or so thanks to the trade that brought him to Chicago from Pittsburgh in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2023 draft. The third-year wide receiver, who was a second-round pick out of Notre Dame in 2020, is now getting a fresh start with the Bears, remaining until the end of his one-and-a-half-year rookie contract.

While it’s a tough time for Claypool, who needs to learn a new play before he likely makes his Bears debut Sunday at Soldier Field against the Dolphins, there is excitement about his opportunity.

So who does he want to be for the Bears now that he’s here?

“I’m a playmaker and I’m really excited to play,” Claypool said. “I feel like I haven’t had the full opportunity to show what I can do this year, but I think I’ve been able to show it in the past. I’m really excited to be able to gain the trust of Justin (Fields) knowing that if he needs a play, he can come to me.”

In two and a half years in the NFL, Claypool showed it at times, with 153 receptions for 2,044 yards and 12 touchdowns in 39 regular season games.

So far in 2022, he has 32 catches for 311 yards and a touchdown in eight games during the 2022 season.

He will now get to work with quarterback Justin Fields, who has been playing well of late as he enters his second NFL season. It’s a signal Claypool is familiar with as they now combine for the final nine games of the 2022 season and beyond.

“We’re part of the same agency, so we have some common ground, and I’ve been following him lately in terms of their latest game in prime time,” Claypool said of Fields. “I know a lot of people are excited about the way he plays, and obviously I’m one of those people, so I’m excited to work with him.”