Chicago Bears News: Chase Claypool in the doghouse, Kyler Gordon injury, and more

Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus met with reporters on Wednesday as the focus shifted from the team’s embarrassing loss against the Green Bay Packers to open the regular season on Sunday to their Week 2 opponent, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

There is a building narrative going around the city of Chicago that their game against the Buccaneers is a must-win game and while early, it certainly is a game where the Bears must show that they made adjustments from the miserable showing that was their game against the Packers.

There should be a caveat applied to the sentiment that the Bears have to beat the Buccaneers because Tampa Bay is a bad team and Baker Mayfield is a bad quarterback. Here is the problem with that sentiment, the Bears are also a bad team, and the one thing that the Buccaneers do well, get to the quarterback, is a problem for the poor state of the Bears’ offensive system.

So, no, the Bears don’t have to beat the Buccaneers because no bad team should be given that assumption.

Especially a Bears team that saw one of the worst game tapes that a wide receiver could have in Chase Claypool’s effort against the Packers.

Chase Claypool’s status for the Chicago Bears’ game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Eberflus admitted to reporters on Wednesday that he did have a meeting with Claypool and did not rule out the idea that the wide receiver may be a healthy scratch on Sunday.

The next step for the Bears to take in the disaster that has been the aftermath of their trade for Claypool is to make the wide receiver inactive game. Claypool’s effort against the Packers can not go unchecked by the coaching signs and could represent the beginning of the staff losing a grip on the locker room.

Kyler Gordon injury update

Kyler Gordon did not practice on Wednesday amid reports that the second-year cornerback suffered a fractured hand during Sunday’s game against the Packers. Eberflus did not confirm whether or not Gordon had suffered a fractured hand but also did not rule out a move to the IR for the team’s starting nickelback.

Chicago Bears will wear alternate jerseys on Sunday

The orange helmets with orange jerseys will be back for the Bears on Sunday against the Buccaneers. The Bears debuted the orange helmets last season in their road games against the Washington Commanders and Dallas Cowboys.