Below is the reaction to the Pittsburgh Steelers taking Notre Dame wide receiver Chase Claypool in the second round with the No. 49 overall pick. In what is considered a deep wide receiver class, Claypool was the 11th receiver taken.
Claypool was Notre Dame’s 2019 MVP and caught 66 passes for 1,037 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2019.
NFL Network Analyst Michael Irvin
“What a great pickup for Ben Roethlisberger coming back, to expand on that receiving group that they have. We talked about this all day — this is a big guy that can run and he can go up and get the ball.
“Thirteen touchdowns last season for Notre Dame, the most since Will Fuller had 15 back in 2014. This man is a touchdown machine that will do well with Roethlisberger and that receiving group.”
NFL Network Analyst Kurt Warner
“I love it. When you look at this team, they’ve built it around so many different things — they’re good up front on defense, they’ve got the secondary, they’ve got the offensive line, so I love that they added another weapon on the outside.
“They’ve got some good, young receivers to build around with him and JuJu Smith-Schuster. Big Ben is going to be happy when he gets healthy.”
Notre Dame Head Coach Brian Kelly (Via Twitter)
“The [Steelers] are getting a steal with [Chase Claypool]. He is going to make an immediate impact on offense and special teams and will continue the legacy he started at Notre Dame.”
Pittsburgh Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert
“We were excited that that player was available to us; not that position, that Chase Claypool the player was available to us. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s fast, and when a player like that is available, it’s easy.”
Steelers Offensive Coordinator Randy Fichtner
“I am very excited about this opportunity to work with him. He is one of those rare types of a combination of size and speed. His production this past season was off the charts. He finds ways to average a touchdown in every game he plays. He is a point scorer.
“There is no job too small. He will block. He volunteers for special teams. This guy is a football player. He has a lot of unique traits for the position. A lot of things to be really excited about. Gives you a potential red zone threat. He is an outside position player first and gives you the option of playing in the slot as well.”
Social Media Reaction
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