The news of the Pittsburgh Steelers still shopping around their once star running back turned holdout Le’Veon Bell is not too surprising given how much success his backup James Conner has achieved, so Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans can still dream.
Despite Bell’s frustrations with the team stemming from being franchised tagged twice the back is slated to end his holdout during the Steelers’ bye in week 7. Since the team has been shopping him around for trade partners and the Bucs are horrendously suffering in the running game, some of the Bucs’ fanbase hope to land the star back. Here’s what it will take for Bell to become a Buc.
Bell wants to be in a lateral or better position for his value
Granted, Bell would have no say should the Steelers reach a deal with another team for his services, but if Bell doesn’t want to play for you, how much could you want him on the field? Yes, this is 2018 and motivation is still very much a question about a player who wasn’t willing to play to term.
Are the Bucs in a similar position or better with the Steelers?
All things considered, the Steelers are a more stable home for him, because they’re perennial playoff contenders and are in a better position with the team’s dominance over the struggling Atlanta Falcons Sunday, 41-17. Even though, the Steelers and Bucs have similar records aside from Pittsburgh’s tie, Bell would have a better shot at the playoffs with his current team.
Could Bell’s presence improve the backfield?
Since Bell was drafted in the second round by the Steelers in 2013, he hasn’t known any other home. What we do know is there have been only two seasons where he missed eclipsing the 1,000 rushing mark: his rookie season and his injury-shortened 2015 where he produced 860 and 556 yards, respectively.
In 13 games in his rookie year, he still produced a dominating 8 touchdowns on the ground. His careers average yards per carry is 4.3, which is expected from a premiere back and he has 35 TDs over his 5 year career with a career high on 9 TDs in 2017.
Now let’s look at the Bucs backfield this season and last.
In 2017, the Bucs failed to produce a 1,000 yard back, but did combine for 1,450 yards. Peyton Barber led the way with 423 yards rushing, followed by Doug Martin with 406, Jacquizz Rodgers with 244, and quarterback Jameis Winston at 135. Barber topped yards per carry at 3.9 and the team combined for 8 rushing TDs.
Unfortunately 2018 yields a much different story with 148 yards on 50 carries for Barber with a 3.0 yards per carry average, a significant drop from last season. This amounts to a 37 yards a game average. The only rushing TD was produced by QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is regulated now to the bench despite an unheard of three game start to the season.
The Bucs had plenty of opportunities to establish the run, especially in the first two games, but without adequate production, the team has been forced to rely more on the air. Teams like the Steelers and the Bears learned to shut down the deep game Fitzpatrick was hitting successfully with wide receiver DeSean Jackson.
Could Bell have boosted the unit? Hard to say, but if Barber couldn’t pick up where he left off last season, Bell wouldn’t have likely gotten much done either. Even without Bell’s presence with the Steelers, Conner produced 342 of the team’s 420 rushing yards. He nearly doubles Barber’s production at 68.4 yards a game and 5 TDs. If anything, that tells me the run blocking on the Steelers is far superior than the Bucs.
How much of your future are you willing to sacrifice to bring Bell here?
The Steelers clearly have the bargaining chips in their favor if a team is desperate enough to overpay for Bell. If the Steelers can bank on the Bucs not making the playoffs again, a second and possible third rounder would dramatically improve their depth. The Steelers aren’t stupid enough to think Bell is worth the value of like linebacker Khalil Mack when the Chicago Bears traded for him from the Oakland Raiders. While the Mack deal has paid off handsomely for the Bears, the Bucs’ biggest needs are on defense.
One can argue running the ball to eat clock makes for effective defense in theory, but given the uncertain nature of the offensive line, that’s a huge gamble given what the Bucs defense has continuously seemed to have given up. It’s no secret head coach Dirk Koetter and GM Jason Licht are on the hot seat and likely be gone if the Bucs don’t make the playoffs this season. One can make a case they’re at a win-now mentality, but let’s face it, the Bucs aren’t just a player away from contending. They lack serious depth particularly on defense, not to mention the poor coaching of the unit from his bestie, Mike Smith, which makes the foundation look like it’s as stable as something cobbled together from Elmer’s Glue and popsicle sticks.
Conclusion
The Bucs franchise aren’t known to deal especially for major names during the season. That pattern is not likely to change. The Bucs are far from being contenders and a perennial struggling team lowers morale and motivation for all. Let’s face it fans, the ONLY way Bell is coming here is next season and whoever the GM is, overpays far beyond his actual value.
