The Le'Veon Bell Tolls ... To the Ravens

[BlackOmega]

Well that's that, no Bell this season officially so let the drama of where he goes next year begin

[FantasyFreak]

I don't buy the Indy narrative, Mack has looked really good and they have other positions of priority on their defense and at WR. I think The Jets, 49ers and Raiders are all options. Not sure if Gruden wants to spend that dough on a RB, but it would definitely be in their financial capabilities.

[jetsfan5757]

As a Jets fan, I kind of hope it's not us. He would help Bradford, no question, but I'd rather see that dough spent on the O-line. Crow and McGuire are way less talented than Bell, but I think QB and every skill position would look better with a stronger line. Our current center can't even get the damn ball to Darnold on a shotgun spike (because of injury, but he was struggling even before the injury).

[Cameron Giles]

I could see the Colts. Mack is playing well, but it's still Le'Veon Bell and you do want to maximize Luck's prime. Jets will be linked to everyone just because they have so much room.

Others:

Texans, Titans, Ravens, Packers

[DJB]

I think it would be hilarious if the Steelers tag him lol

[jetsfan5757]

I think it would be hilarious if the Steelers tag him lol

That would be the opposite of hilarious. I am participating in the thread here, but I think the last thing we need is to talk about this same garbage for a whole other year...

[AussieMate]

I think it would be hilarious if the Steelers tag him lol

That would be the opposite of hilarious. I am participating in the thread here, but I think the last thing we need is to talk about this same garbage for a whole other year...

Lol no goddamn way I'll be participating again if he is somehow tagged, there would have to be 0% chance of that happening though so no need to worry. Can't wait for the draft threads in the off season about Steelers drafting an RB in the 2nd rnd though, fun fun.

[Jintsfan66]

No concerns at all. hmmm kay. That kind of confidence is overflowing with selective biases. I guess, in the long run, we'll see. Put the patient L.Bell behind a poor o-line, offer him a ton of money, and watch him be somewhere in the middle of the pack as it pertains to fantasy production. If I were an owner, I'd have a ton of concerns. Talent simply isn't everything when it comes to rb production.

Bell isn't stupid enough to put himself behind a poor offensive line, which is a lot of my confidence. If he gets traded, whole different scenario. I just don't see that happening.

well he was stupid enough to listen to his agent and sit out all year. If he thinks teams are going to be lined up to sign him for some crazy amount of cash he is mistaken. His gamble was miscalculated.

[FantasyFreak]

No concerns at all. hmmm kay. That kind of confidence is overflowing with selective biases. I guess, in the long run, we'll see. Put the patient L.Bell behind a poor o-line, offer him a ton of money, and watch him be somewhere in the middle of the pack as it pertains to fantasy production. If I were an owner, I'd have a ton of concerns. Talent simply isn't everything when it comes to rb production.

Bell isn't stupid enough to put himself behind a poor offensive line, which is a lot of my confidence. If he gets traded, whole different scenario. I just don't see that happening.

well he was stupid enough to listen to his agent and sit out all year. If he thinks teams are going to be lined up to sign him for some crazy amount of cash he is mistaken. His gamble was miscalculated.

Agreed.

[badbuddah]

I can't tell if people on Twitter are trolling or actually believe this was a smart move by Bell. The 70 or 80 million dollar deal he wanted before the season won't ever happen. I don't think he ever makes over 50 million for the rest of his career. I see a deal in the 12 million per year range, max 14. I also don't think he goes to Green Bay because it isn't their MO and Jones is playing well. Texans might make sense, idk what the hell is happening with Foreman, and idk about Miller.

[Cameron Giles]

I can't tell if people on Twitter are trolling or actually believe this was a smart move by Bell. The 70 or 80 million dollar deal he wanted before the season won't ever happen. I don't think he ever makes over 50 million for the rest of his career. I see a deal in the 12 million per year range, max 14. I also don't think he goes to Green Bay because it isn't their MO and Jones is playing well. Texans might make sense, idk what the hell is happening with Foreman, and idk about Miller.

I'm not sure why people keep referencing the 5 year, $70M offer they made. Only $10M was guaranteed as a signing bonus. So, he would've only made $10M for this season, which is $4.5M less than he could've made this season on the franchise tag. The contract contained rolling guarantees. Meaning, they would only activate by certain dates. So, there would've been $23M in guarantees if they decided to keep him around for the season after.

Basically, Pittsburgh could've got out of his contract after this season for less money and he'd still be a free agent. It was a terrible deal. I have no clue why fans are using that against Bell.

[Jigga94]

I can't tell if people on Twitter are trolling or actually believe this was a smart move by Bell. The 70 or 80 million dollar deal he wanted before the season won't ever happen. I don't think he ever makes over 50 million for the rest of his career. I see a deal in the 12 million per year range, max 14. I also don't think he goes to Green Bay because it isn't their MO and Jones is playing well. Texans might make sense, idk what the hell is happening with Foreman, and idk about Miller.

I'm not sure why people keep referencing the 5 year, $70M offer they made. Only $10M was guaranteed as a signing bonus. So, he would've only made $10M for this season, which is $4.5M less than he could've made this season on the franchise tag. The contract contained rolling guarantees. Meaning, they would only activate by certain dates. So, there would've been $23M in guarantees if they decided to keep him around for the season after.

Basically, Pittsburgh could've got out of his contract after this season for less money and he'd still be a free agent. It was a terrible deal. I have no clue why fans are using that against Bell.

I get what you are saying here. That still doesn't change the fact that hes not going to get anywhere near his asking price. The old deal means nothing in terms of what his new deal will be. I'll tell you it wont be $14.5M per year. Dumb decision to hold out, Make your $14.5M and then go sign a big deal after you prove you're worth it. Now he just looks like an a$$ who is all about the money and not the team

[Cameron Giles]

I get what you are saying here. That still doesn't change the fact that hes not going to get anywhere near his asking price. The old deal means nothing in terms of what his new deal will be. I'll tell you it wont be $14.5M per year. Dumb decision to hold out, Make your $14.5M and then go sign a big deal after you prove you're worth it. Now he just looks like an a$$ who is all about the money and not the team

I agree that Bell probably isn't going to get the deal he thinks he'll get. But, I still think he'll get a good deal. All it takes is one team who feels that adding Bell can transform their offense.

Here's the thing. Why is Bell wrong for prioritizing his self worth, but the Steelers are right for prioritizing what they're willing to spend? My only criticism of Bell is the process of his holdout, but his underlying goal is correct. The Steelers were going to ride him for another season and not give him a new contract afterwards. If he got injured, then what? It wouldn't matter to them, but it would ruin Bell's value. It's the same thing as the Earl Thomas situation. Seattle doesn't give a crap that he's injured. The only thing affected is potentially the money Thomas will get as a free agent and his body. Nobody cares that he played "for the team."

NFL teams are great at making athletes look like selfish pricks for not signing the contracts they want them to. Redskins did the same thing with Kirk Cousins.

[jetsfan5757]

I get what you are saying here. That still doesn't change the fact that hes not going to get anywhere near his asking price. The old deal means nothing in terms of what his new deal will be. I'll tell you it wont be $14.5M per year. Dumb decision to hold out, Make your $14.5M and then go sign a big deal after you prove you're worth it. Now he just looks like an a$$ who is all about the money and not the team

I agree that Bell probably isn't going to get the deal he thinks he'll get. But, I still think he'll get a good deal. All it takes is one team who feels that adding Bell can transform their offense.

Here's the thing. Why is Bell wrong for prioritizing his self worth, but the Steelers are right for prioritizing what they're willing to spend? My only criticism of Bell is the process of his holdout, but his underlying goal is correct. The Steelers were going to ride him for another season and not give him a new contract afterwards. If he got injured, then what? It wouldn't matter to them, but it would ruin Bell's value. It's the same thing as the Earl Thomas situation. Seattle doesn't give a crap that he's injured. The only thing affected is potentially the money Thomas will get as a free agent and his body. Nobody cares that he played "for the team."

NFL teams are great at making athletes look like selfish pricks for not signing the contracts they want them to. Redskins did the same thing with Kirk Cousins.

Agreed 100%. I don't fault Bell for sitting out. I fault him for stringing people, mainly his teammates, along.

And I think he will get a contract in line with or exceeding what DJ got, less than what Gurley got.

If I had to guess today, from Oakland. Gruden may not want to pay the money but those fans need something to be happy about.

[mild]

I get what you are saying here. That still doesn't change the fact that hes not going to get anywhere near his asking price. The old deal means nothing in terms of what his new deal will be. I'll tell you it wont be $14.5M per year. Dumb decision to hold out, Make your $14.5M and then go sign a big deal after you prove you're worth it. Now he just looks like an a$$ who is all about the money and not the team

Can I politely disagree with this? As per Earl Thomas - what if he'd gotten injured? They ran him 400 times last year, and indicated they'd do the same again this year - that's been proven to be physically unsustainable by the vast majority of RB's in the league. He's going to be a FA, he's going to have his health. That's all he wanted... that, and some respect for what he's done for the team to this point.

We can say "he lost his gamble" all we want, but we won't truly know that until FA. I think a bad team like the Jets will give him his contract. There will be a bidding war by desperate teams for a back of his skill-set. Why would there not be? David Johnson just got a nice contract in the same sort of range, and he's the same age as Bell and has been arguably less consistent (injuries + production).