Le’Veon Bell and the New York Jets have been linked for multiple seasons to this point.
Bell, in his older days, tweeted about the Jets being a perfect landing spot for him and his services. Heading into the 2019 offseason, the Jets have a large sum of money they can spend on potential free agents. However, this potential marriage of Bell and the Jets might not be best for either party. While Bell may be paid as the most expensive running back in NFL history, his performance would surely dip behind the Jets’ subpar offensive line; by any measure or eye test, the Jets have one of the worst offensive lines in football.
While the Houston Texans’ and Seattle Seahawks’ lines may get more press because of the fabulous quarterbacks that play behind them, the Jets have a below-average offensive line. And, although the Jets have enough money to go after offensive line help, such as Matt Paradis of the Broncos, it may behoove the Jets to focus solely on improving the offensive line to make sure that Sam Darnold has brain matter beyond the upcoming season.
If the Jets were to allocate a significant salary to Bell, the offensive line would be unable to radically improve. As a whole, the Jets should look to reinforce the offensive line through the draft and free agency and either draft a running back or acquire the services of a cheaper running back not named Le’Veon Bell.
The Jets and Bell should not marry based solely on principle. While the Jets need a strong running game to pair with Sam Darnold, and Bell needs to be paid, the likelihood of Bell reaching his previous levels of production without a very strong offensive line is comparatively low. Even with the gobs of potential of Sam Darnold, Bell would certainly not have time for his characteristic patient running style. For both the Jets and Bell, the preferred situation is not a connection. The Jets would be better served to invest in their offensive line and across the board on offense and Bell should look to sit behind a great offensive line.
Despite recent rumors of Bell gaining a significant amount of weight over the offseason, his Instagram stories display Bell as an athlete trying to maintain proper football shape after not playing in the 2018 season. Bell will almost certainly be ready for football in August and September if he isn’t already. No team that really wants Bell is worried about his conditioning moving forward. If a team is worried about Bell, they would certainly not pay a meaningful salary for him moving forward.
There is no “perfect” fit for Bell. In fact, the two teams with the largest cap spaces (the Jets and the Indianapolis Colts) are not ideal places for Bell. With the Jets, the offensive line is subpar at best. In Indianapolis, the Colts have invested heavily in a running back group already spearheaded by Marlon Mack, Nyheim Hines, and Jordan Wilkins.
Despite the fantastic offensive line in Indy, led by All-Pro Quenton Nelson, the Colts should also not look to sign Bell. Bell’s remaining options are often classified as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Baltimore Ravens. While Bell going to Tampa Bay make sense for the revolution of the Tampa Bay offense, the Buccaneers fall into the same category of the Jets in having a pedestrian offensive line, despite having good pieces on the line.
For the Ravens, they may look to focus on a running back by committee situation, similar to that of Indianapolis, moving forward. In either situation, Bell would not be maximizing his talent because he is not playing behind a great offensive line or as the lone back in the backfield.
Bell has also been linked with San Francisco, although the move does not have as much traction as a potential Antonio Brown trade to the 49ers. While almost every team could use a back like Bell, there are very few teams that simultaneously have a need for a running back and a strong enough offensive line to have Bell be at his max potential.
Regardless of where Bell goes, he will be productive, at least to a certain extent. The max productivity of Bell would be reached in a situation where he is the clear-cut No. 1 running option, and in a situation where he is running behind a very stable offensive line like the one he had in Pittsburgh.
The goal of Bell and his agent should be to find the best fit for his services in order to elevate his legacy and pursue a championship. While Bell may have monetary reasons to join a team such as the Jets or the Colts, the optimal path for Bell’s success is finding the mix of money, a need at running back, and a good offensive line.
The Jets should set out a clear plan to upgrade the offensive line, acquire a cheaper running back (such as Tevin Coleman), and maximize Sam Darnold. By saving money on a running back, the Jets can get a younger option while maintaining cap space to solidify the offensive line, receiving corps, and any holes on defense.
Bell has a very distinct running style, relying heavily on his patience and vision before dashing through defensive holes. Without a significant upgrade to the offensive line in New York, Bell would be limited as a producer, and his runs would look less visually-appealing. His traditional bouncing behind the line of scrimmage would lead to a plethora of negative runs, leading to the Jets being put behind the ideal scenario on many drives.
While the development of Darnold could open up play-action, Bell would have to be more decisive than he had been in Pittsburgh.
