Chase Claypool had a roller coaster of a night.
The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver started Thursday night’s game against the Minnesota Vikings with a personal foul and a fumble that would be overturned. Claypool then stepped up in the second half with some big catches that contributed to the Steelers coming back from a 29-0 defecit. Claypool finished out the night with eight catches and 93 receiving yards.
While his string of great catches deserves to be recognized, what he did in the final seconds of the game should also be recognized. On his eighth reception, Claypool caught a 4th-and-1 in the middle of the field with less than 40 seconds left. With no timeouts, the Steelers needed to spike the ball but Claypool celebrated and noticeably wasted enough time that could’ve given the Steelers one more play at the end of the game. With three seconds left, Ben Roethlisberger threaded the needle for a pass to Pat Freiermuth that wound up being incomplete thanks to a clean hit by the Vikings defense. The Vikings would win 36-28.
It’s debatable if one more play would’ve been the difference for the Steelers and you can argue that Claypool’s performance helped the Steelers get into a position to win in the first place but many people accused Claypool of lacking situational awareness and maturity and they definitely have a point.