Le'Veon Bell reportedly asking for $17 million per year from the Steelers

[Cyphon25]

Again, you are the ONLY one arguing the game. That was just one example. The POINT, the QUESTION, the CONVERSATION is about Bell's value to the Steelers. WHEN Bell went out, the Steelers game plan went out as well. No debate about that. THAT is the point.

Well you brought that game up, not me. I was just pointing out that you were wrong. I was speaking globally when I made my initial post about the offense being able to function without Bell. If you need more than one game of proof just look to D Wills first season with us. He was a 30+ year old RB that was able to produce at similar levels to Bell because our offense is that good.

There is no player on THIS TEAM that carries the value Bell does for this offense. Not going to move AB or Ben to the RB/Slot position. You stated Bell has more value for other teams than he does for the Steelers. I only pointed out that he holds more value to this offense than any other player on this team currently. Then argued that Bell is not just a plug somebody else in type player. You can pull up all the stats of DWill, other team's players, whatever. Just keep rocking that roll if it helps you through your day. Peace.

Again, wrong. Ben Roethlisberger carries more value than Bell and that isn't even up for debate. You lose Bell you still have some hope at an SB, Ben goes down and see what the vegas odds start to look like.

And just to be clear I am not arguing that Bell isn't valuable to us, he just isn't as valuable to us as he would be elsewhere because of what we already have. You can't plug someone in and get the exact same results Bell would give you, but you can plug someone in and keep the offense moving. If Ben retired today, THEN Bell would probably reach that kind of value.

[Born2Steel]

I don't know if you don't read the whole post, or just don't understand it. Either way nice chat. Moving on now.

[86WARD]

Bell is a Top-3 RB in the league. Having him as a RB on this team is HUGE!! You won’t get that production out of the backs on this roster...you’re oblivious to the world if you think someone can step in and be as productive as Bell running, receiving, blocking, decoying, rapping, tweeting, instagramming, whatever you want to say. There’s maybe two other backs that can do it. Without Bell, the offense changes. Sure it can be productive, but it’s not as good as when Bell is in the line up. It’s just not...

Having said that, he’s not worth $17M in a salary cap world.

[Cyphon25]

I don't know if you don't read the whole post, or just don't understand it. Either way nice chat. Moving on now.

Well I quoted your whole post and responded directly to it so if there is any misunderstanding it is on you.

Bell is a Top-3 RB in the league. Having him as a RB on this team is HUGE!! You won’t get that production out of the backs on this roster...you’re oblivious to the world if you think someone can step in and be as productive as Bell running, receiving, blocking, decoying, rapping, tweeting, instagramming, whatever you want to say. There’s maybe two other backs that can do it. Without Bell, the offense changes. Sure it can be productive, but it’s not as good as when Bell is in the line up. It’s just not...

Having said that, he’s not worth $17M in a salary cap world.

I don't think this is directly at me but I would guess most people wouldn't argue that you will get the EXACT same offense without Bell. I think the argument is you can still have a good offense without him and that it the key point. As you say he isn't worth 17 mil, but I think that is even more true for teams like the Steelers. Or if you want to include other teams Bell certainly wouldn't be worth that to the Cowboys, Rams, Cardinals, etc...

A lot of value is dependent on roster construction. When you have a rookie QB you have 2 things to consider:

1. He needs weapons around him to help him out. That increases the value of both RB's and WR's.

2. The QB isn't taking up much cap space so you can afford to pay top end to put talent around him.

The Steelers have both a QB and a WR taking up a lot of cap space who are both top guys at their positions. So Bell becomes somewhat less necessary and valuable to the teams success. That doesn't mean he isn't valuable and a GREAT piece to have, but that only remains true if he comes at the right price. I don't believe the Steelers should pay any higher than 12 a year but I could get behind a team like the Browns paying him 15.

[Mojouw]

Everyone acts like DWill doing what he did here was some kind of surprise. It wasn't. Sure he was older, but the carry split with a variety of backs during his prime in Carolina keep some of the wear and tear down.

Long story short, he replicated his Carolina stats with the Steelers rushing. He increased his reception stats -- why? Because Haley built an offense that flows through the unique skill set of Leveon Bell.

Yes, Ben is the trigger man and AB is the kill shot. But the match-up and formation flexibility that Bell brings to the field allows the Steelers to do some things on offense that may not be possible or at the least, not as effective, with a run only RB on the field.

Again, that does not mean that Bell should be given a ludicrous contract. But to deny his value to the team, is just trying to edit the situation to fit current emotions.

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...W/WillDe02.htm

[Cyphon25]

Everyone acts like DWill doing what he did here was some kind of surprise. It wasn't. Sure he was older, but the carry split with a variety of backs during his prime in Carolina keep some of the wear and tear down.

Long story short, he replicated his Carolina stats with the Steelers rushing. He increased his reception stats -- why? Because Haley built an offense that flows through the unique skill set of Leveon Bell.

Yes, Ben is the trigger man and AB is the kill shot. But the match-up and formation flexibility that Bell brings to the field allows the Steelers to do some things on offense that may not be possible or at the least, not as effective, with a run only RB on the field.

Again, that does not mean that Bell should be given a ludicrous contract. But to deny his value to the team, is just trying to edit the situation to fit current emotions.

https://www.pro-football-reference.c...W/WillDe02.htm

Again, I can only speak for myself but I don't say it from a position of surprise. I use it to illustrate that good value can be found even if the RB isn't considered a top guy. So much of football is about scheme, circumstance, and those around you. As you say, Bell being on the field allows the offense to do certain things but that also works both ways. Bell is able to do as much as he does because not only do we have the pieces in place to keep teams from targeting Bell, but we have built a system for him to be targeted so often.

It is hard to try to put numbers on it but here is the way I see it.

I would take 80% production at 8-10 mil from the position than Bells 100% production at 14 mil. Our offense has enough to weapons to go with a lesser RB. Now if you remove AB or Ben, then we can talking about needing a guy of Bells calibre.

[Hawkman]

[Mojouw]

Again, I can only speak for myself but I don't say it from a position of surprise. I use it to illustrate that good value can be found even if the RB isn't considered a top guy. So much of football is about scheme, circumstance, and those around you. As you say, Bell being on the field allows the offense to do certain things but that also works both ways. Bell is able to do as much as he does because not only do we have the pieces in place to keep teams from targeting Bell, but we have built a system for him to be targeted so often.

It is hard to try to put numbers on it but here is the way I see it.

I would take 80% production at 8-10 mil from the position than Bells 100% production at 14 mil. Our offense has enough to weapons to go with a lesser RB. Now if you remove AB or Ben, then we can talking about needing a guy of Bells calibre.

The interesting thing, for me, is projecting the career timelines for the "Big 3" on offense.

Ben is 36.
AB is 29.
Bell is 26.

AB is almost certainly not getting another big $$$ deal from the Steelers. His current deal runs through 2021 and puts him as a free agent entering his age 33 season. If he would get resigned at that point, it would be on fairly "team friendly" deal.

Maybe Ben gets an extension/rework to bump his salary up to the new "elite" QB level and push his contractual retirement out to about 38 or 39. But, he is close to not being on the books.

What am I trying to say here? The Steelers, if they wanted to get clever with things, have the cap space to pay Bell whatever silly # needed to make a long-term deal work. He is then the high priced bridge between the Ben/AB/Bell trio to say a Rudolph/Bell/Washington/Smith-Schuster grouping. I'm not saying the team should or even needs to do that. It would almost certainly create a cascading effect where Ben, AB, and a few others would start wanting their contracts significantly increased. But everyone acts like handing Bell $17 million per would cripple the team from a cap standpoint. From the cursory survey I can access on a few who knows how accurate websites, if they backloaded that puppy a bit (held down cap hit in 2018-2020) then Bell would hit the cap sheet around the time AB and Ben move off of it. Around the same time some group of Watt, Dupree, Burns, Davis, Smith-Schuster, and random guy I'm forgetting likely hit the books with big $$ extensions. But Haden and Gilbert leaving the books around that time should balance everything out.

Again, I think that paying Bell over about 12-15 million per year sets a terrible precedent that the team would come to regret, but it could be done according to math.

[Lady Steel]

I'm sitting here wondering how long a thread about carburetors would be on this board.

*And they think women talk a lot.*

[Hawkman]

I'm sitting here wondering how long a thread about carburetors would be on this board.

*And they think women talk a lot.*

[FrancoLambert]

I can't wait for Bell to leave after this season and finally get rid of this yearly distraction.

One of the best RB's in the game, but not worth the aggravation and attention paid to it.