Bears claim QB Connor Shaw from Browns

Two weeks before the deadline to sign Alshon Jeffery to a long-term deal, the Bears added his former college quarterback.

Friday, they claimed South Carolina alum Connor Shaw, who had been waived by the Browns one day earlier. Because the team’s roster was at 89 players, it did not need to make a corresponding move.

According to a Fox Sports report, Bears GM Ryan Pace’s former team, the Saints, mistakenly emailed the entire NFL to place the waiver claim. The Bears had waiver priority above New Orleans, and picked up a fifth quarterback for their roster.

Shaw spent 2015 on Injured Reserve after breaking his thumb in the preseason. He started one game after being signed as an undrafted free agent in 2014; he completed half his 28 pass attempts for 177 yards, no scores and one interception in a losing effort.

He started 32 games for coach Steve Spurrier at South Carolina, where he played alongside Jeffery. The two famously connected for a 51-yard Hail Mary before halftime of the 2012 Capital One Bowl against Nebraska. If Jeffery and the Bears don’t reach a long-term agreement by July 15, the receiver will play under the one-year franchise tender of $14.59 million.