RB Le'Veon Bell, FA (4 Viewers)

[Godsbrother]

Ben Roethlisberger expressed skepticism Tuesday on Le'Veon Bell's potential impact.
"Honestly, I have no idea with him," Roethlisberger said. "You can't get a read on him. One day, he's practicing, one day, he's not; one day, he's going hard, the next day, he's not. I wish I could. ... If he was a guy like Heath Miller that you knew was busting his butt every day to get back there ... Le'Veon is a rookie, I don't know him quite well enough yet. But if he can come back and help us, we'll take him." It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but if Bell's foot is truly 100 percent then we'd expect him to change Roethlisberger's mind quickly. The second-round pick is clearly the best talent in the Steelers RB room, and it's not close.

Big Ben sounds absolutely stoked.

He is right though. We have seen a grand total of 3 three preseason snaps out of Bell.

ETA: Saying he is the best talent at RB for the Steelers is like being called the prettiest fat girl at the dance

 

[tdhartis]

Ben Roethlisberger expressed skepticism Tuesday on Le'Veon Bell's potential impact.
"Honestly, I have no idea with him," Roethlisberger said. "You can't get a read on him. One day, he's practicing, one day, he's not; one day, he's going hard, the next day, he's not. I wish I could. ... If he was a guy like Heath Miller that you knew was busting his butt every day to get back there ... Le'Veon is a rookie, I don't know him quite well enough yet. But if he can come back and help us, we'll take him." It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but if Bell's foot is truly 100 percent then we'd expect him to change Roethlisberger's mind quickly. The second-round pick is clearly the best talent in the Steelers RB room, and it's not close.

Big Ben sounds absolutely stoked.

I would read this as necessarily bad news. He's just stating the facts. He's a rookie that he's not familiar with, and he's not sure how much he's going to contribute in a real game situation since like us, he's never seen him in that scenario.

It's also hard to gauge someone's work ethic in such a short amount of time. Him going hard one day and then not the next could be due to a variety of factors: the nature of the injury, personal pain threshold, medical staff instruction, coach's instruction, etc.

Not a glowing endorsement, and not a criticism. In other words - realistic.

 

[Franknbeans]

Ben Roethlisberger expressed skepticism Tuesday on Le'Veon Bell's potential impact.
"Honestly, I have no idea with him," Roethlisberger said. "You can't get a read on him. One day, he's practicing, one day, he's not; one day, he's going hard, the next day, he's not. I wish I could. ... If he was a guy like Heath Miller that you knew was busting his butt every day to get back there ... Le'Veon is a rookie, I don't know him quite well enough yet. But if he can come back and help us, we'll take him." It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but if Bell's foot is truly 100 percent then we'd expect him to change Roethlisberger's mind quickly. The second-round pick is clearly the best talent in the Steelers RB room, and it's not close.

Big Ben sounds absolutely stoked.

He is right though. We have seen a grand total of 3 three preseason snaps out of Bell.

ETA: Saying he is the best talent at RB for the Steelers is like being called the prettiest fat girl at the dance

Funny, I read that as Ben is going to force feed Miller this week.

 

[Dinsy Ejotuz]

Not a Bell fan, but no idea why Ben would take a shot at him for not busting his butt to get back. A foot is either healthy, or it's not. If it's not there's really not much butt busting you can do.

 

[DoubleG]

Not a Bell fan, but no idea why Ben would take a shot at him for not busting his butt to get back. A foot is either healthy, or it's not. If it's not there's really not much butt busting you can do.

Because he's frustrated - the Steelers are 0-3 and some of it is his fault. So, being his usual wonderful self, he's simply making sure someone else's shortcomings are the story instead of his own.

 

[B-Deep]

I thin Ben's comments were acurate, i knwo a lot of steelers fans who think Bell is a large part of the answer, but the truth is no one has seen enough of him to have any idea how well he will do.

BUT, I don;t know how wise those comments were, even if accurate. I'd think they were not real well received by bell. Keep things likt that in house, unless he has and there's some issue with Bell.

 

[Faust]

Rotoworld:

Le'Veon Bell says his foot is 100 percent.
Bell beat his 6-8 week timetable by a good bit, as he's practicing in full and expected to make his NFL debut against the Vikings Sunday. Although Ben Roethlisberger didn't sound too excited about getting Bell back, the offensive line is. "He's an Adrian Peterson-type -- I don't want to put him in the same category yet, but he has that type of playmaking ability to break tackles and get yards after he's hit," said tackle Marcus Gilbert. Bell's Week 4 workload will likely depend on how he's running early on. But when the Steelers come out of their bye in Week 6, there won't be any doubt as to who the lead dog is here.

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 

[fantasycurse42]

Glad to join the Bell thread... As an Eddie Lacy/Ray Rice owner, Bell is cracking my lineup this week

Does 15/60/1 against Minn sound feasible or is that just wishful thinking? Also, I don't know much about Bell, does he have any pass catching ability?

 

[yoadrian]

Glad to join the Bell thread... As an Eddie Lacy/Ray Rice owner, Bell is cracking my lineup this week

Does 15/60/1 against Minn sound feasible or is that just wishful thinking? Also, I don't know much about Bell, does he have any pass catching ability?

I think that's feasible, but you have to think they will work him in to the game so temper your expectations, they need him to stay healthy

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I feel like Big Ben's comments are ore his attitude towards the coaching staff right now. I doubt he wants Bell to fail, it only helps the passing game if the running game gets on track. I want to see Bell in action before I absolutely start him but I also got burned watching Gordon get his 1st action last week, might be a slight difference in talent level there.

I hope Bell can make a splash, would be a good story.

 

[hotlanta]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

 

[fantasycurse42]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

I'd start him over Mathews & Wilson, he can't be much worse then them?... Lacy obviously on bye.

Does Bell catch passes?

 

[jeeb]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

No worries. It's just a bell to tatum Ploy Motivate.

 

[yoadrian]

I understand the "I got injuries and need a RB" argument, but don't agree with the "I'm starting him over my other healthy RB/WR because I think he will get more points" logic. Too risky for me

 

[Warpig]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

I'd start him over Mathews & Wilson, he can't be much worse then them?... Lacy obviously on bye.

Does Bell catch passes?

I'm starting him over Mathews, Wilson, AND L. Miller. Bell should be the work horse since Redman and Dwyer are scrub quality. Bell is also supposed to be a good receiver. BONUS!

 

[TheLurkerBelow]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

I'd start him over Mathews & Wilson, he can't be much worse then them?... Lacy obviously on bye.

Does Bell catch passes?

I'm starting him over Mathews, Wilson, AND L. Miller. Bell should be the work horse since Redman and Dwyer are scrub quality. Bell is also supposed to be a good receiver. BONUS!

I wish you the best of luck, but you're taking an awfully big risk. I'd start L Miller over him in a heartbeat. The other two guys, I don't know. I'd probably go with Wilson if it was a soft defense this week, but it isn't (NYG playing KC) so that's a tougher call. I'd probably take the risk on Bell over Matthews though, with the hope that Bell gets some red zone TD opportunities.

I'm not opposed to taking high probability chances, but putting a guy in the lineup that's coming off a multi-week injury and whose only NFL carries were three in the preseason just seems like too big a gamble for me. I have Bell in a couple leagues and I'm keeping on the bench until I see something from him in a real game, but I'm fortunate in that I have other RB options this week.

 

[Godsbrother]

Not a Bell fan, but no idea why Ben would take a shot at him for not busting his butt to get back. A foot is either healthy, or it's not. If it's not there's really not much butt busting you can do.

Because he's frustrated - the Steelers are 0-3 and some of it is his fault. So, being his usual wonderful self, he's simply making sure someone else's shortcomings are the story instead of his own.

You can criticize Ben all you want, and rightfully so considering the turnovers, but the one thing he ALWAYS does is take personal blame for a Steelers loss. He's got his faults but this isn't one of them.

In this case all he was saying is the kid is a rookie, hasn't played a single down and has no idea about how Bell will play. It is tough to get a read on a rookie that hasn't played and has been hurt since training camp.

 

[menobrown]

Not a Bell fan, but no idea why Ben would take a shot at him for not busting his butt to get back. A foot is either healthy, or it's not. If it's not there's really not much butt busting you can do.

Who knows but speculation is fun:

1. Ben is tough and loves to show you are tough by always letting you know what's hurting. He's essentially a tough drama queen. Loves the attention. Maybe he feels he's getting outdone by Bell.

2. He does not like suggestion an unproven rookie RB is going to ride to the rescue. He's played with a lot of the same supporting cast on offense for years so likely just not wanting to help fan the flames that it's the current group that is the issue.

3. The last thing is everything he said is seems 100% accurate with everything I've read.

 

[Bayhawks]

Not a Bell fan, but no idea why Ben would take a shot at him for not busting his butt to get back. A foot is either healthy, or it's not. If it's not there's really not much butt busting you can do.

Because he's frustrated - the Steelers are 0-3 and some of it is his fault. So, being his usual wonderful self, he's simply making sure someone else's shortcomings are the story instead of his own.

You can criticize Ben all you want, and rightfully so considering the turnovers, but the one thing he ALWAYS does is take personal blame for a Steelers loss. He's got his faults but this isn't one of them.

In this case all he was saying is the kid is a rookie, hasn't played a single down and has no idea about how Bell will play. It is tough to get a read on a rookie that hasn't played and has been hurt since training camp.

Agree with you, but I think Ben's comments were inappropriate. He is supposed to be a leader, I don't think questioning a guy's toughness is the type of thing a leader should do, especially not via the media like that. I didn't expect it from Ben, he seems to (usually) say the right thing, even when the Steelers let Arians "retire" and brought in Haley to install an offense that I think Ben didn't like.

 

[SaintsInDome2006]

Ben Roethlisberger expressed skepticism Tuesday on Le'Veon Bell's potential impact.
"Honestly, I have no idea with him," Roethlisberger said. "You can't get a read on him. One day, he's practicing, one day, he's not; one day, he's going hard, the next day, he's not. I wish I could. ... If he was a guy like Heath Miller that you knew was busting his butt every day to get back there ... Le'Veon is a rookie, I don't know him quite well enough yet. But if he can come back and help us, we'll take him." It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but if Bell's foot is truly 100 percent then we'd expect him to change Roethlisberger's mind quickly. The second-round pick is clearly the best talent in the Steelers RB room, and it's not close.

Big Ben sounds absolutely stoked.

Ben sounds like a bloke none too happy about his job right now.

Not a good situation.

BTW: You have to love RW. If you heard this from Ben Roethlisberger himself, in person, and then you heard what RW's guy told you, who would you be more inclined to believe? Ben sounds apathetic though, that's a bigger problem no matter how good Bell is.

 

[DoubleG]

So I'm reading CBS...and get to this today:

by Marty Gitlin | CBSSports.com
(03:43 pm ET) Among the worst-kept secrets in the NFL this week is apparently the projected Week 4 starter at running back for the winless Steelers. The team hasn't confirmed it, but it will be rookieLe'Veon Bell taking the handoffs when they play at Minnesota on Sunday, according to thePittsburgh Tribune-Review.Bell is back at full strength from Lisfranc surgery. He was the projected starter before sustaining the injury and it is hoped he can bolster the team's meager 3.0 per-rush average through three games.

The bolded red part....ummm...what? No one had reported surgery had they???

 

[BigSteelThrill]

So I'm reading CBS...and get to this today:

by Marty Gitlin | CBSSports.com

(03:43 pm ET) Among the worst-kept secrets in the NFL this week is apparently the projected Week 4 starter at running back for the winless Steelers. The team hasn't confirmed it, but it will be rookieLe'Veon Bell taking the handoffs when they play at Minnesota on Sunday, according to thePittsburgh Tribune-Review.Bell is back at full strength from Lisfranc surgery. He was the projected starter before sustaining the injury and it is hoped he can bolster the team's meager 3.0 per-rush average through three games.

The bolded red part....ummm...what? No one had reported surgery had they???

No, its a bad report... building off a previously bad report/rumor.

 

[davearm]

I understand the "I got injuries and need a RB" argument, but don't agree with the "I'm starting him over my other healthy RB/WR because I think he will get more points" logic. Too risky for me

Huh. "I think he will get more points" logic guides all my lineup decisions. Maybe I'm doing it wrong.

 

[DoubleG]

So I'm reading CBS...and get to this today:

by Marty Gitlin | CBSSports.com

(03:43 pm ET) Among the worst-kept secrets in the NFL this week is apparently the projected Week 4 starter at running back for the winless Steelers. The team hasn't confirmed it, but it will be rookieLe'Veon Bell taking the handoffs when they play at Minnesota on Sunday, according to thePittsburgh Tribune-Review.Bell is back at full strength from Lisfranc surgery. He was the projected starter before sustaining the injury and it is hoped he can bolster the team's meager 3.0 per-rush average through three games.

The bolded red part....ummm...what? No one had reported surgery had they???

No, its a bad report... building off a previously bad report/rumor.

lol - they just changed "surgery" to "injury" on the website. Obviously someone else saw it too. IIRC we've never even been told that it was a lisfanc injury "officially".

 

[fantasycurse42]

Just looked at his college stats - He had 382 rushes in college last season!!! That's nuts... Also grabbed over 30 catches in each of his last 2 seasons.

I'm actually feeling good that I grabbed this guy in the 12th in each of my leagues, hopefully he'll pay off big time!

http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/stats/_/id/503183/leveon-bell

 

[beef]

Pitt needs a qb.

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Pitt needs a qb.

Roethlisburger is a hell of a QB. Get out of here with that garbage.

 

[FlapJacks]

Felix Jones' breakout week?

 

[Adam Harstad]

Pitt needs a qb.

Roethlisburger is a hell of a QB. Get out of here with that garbage.

The only QB Pittsburgh needs is Jared Lorenzen. Maybe Jamarcus Russell. Sign them and put them on the offensive line- they can't possibly be any worse than what Pittsburgh's currently got in place, can they?

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Pitt needs a qb.

Roethlisburger is a hell of a QB. Get out of here with that garbage.

The only QB Pittsburgh needs is Jared Lorenzen. Maybe Jamarcus Russell. Sign them and put them on the offensive line- they can't possibly be any worse than what Pittsburgh's currently got in place, can they?

Exactly right.

 

[Bobby Guano]

I'm very seriously considering playing him this week.....my other options are Ridley and Ellington.

Vikings defense is bad, bad, bad....

 

[tdhartis]

I'm very seriously considering playing him this week.....my other options are Ridley and Ellington.

Vikings defense is bad, bad, bad....

I'm seriously considering him over Mathews, and would probably have him in over Ellington.

Basically, I think he only has a slightly lower floor, but a much better ceiling than players of that type.

 

[Sabertooth]

I have him flexed over DeAndre Hopkins.

 

[Upchuck]

Given that his foot is now 100%, according to him, should I trot out my secret weapon this week (got him in the next to last round) or wait another week?

I know Ben's comments are disappointing both to his owners and I'm sure Bell himself. What's the direction to take here? I'm leaning towards a wait and see, but I'm hurting at RB with Wilson, Mathews, Lacy, and Bradshaw all being busts so I really need to put him in there.

The way I read Bell's quote onilne, it sounded to me like he was saying there was 100% chance he was playing, not that his foot was 100% healed. Not saying it isn't; just saying the way the quote was worded you could take it another way.

 

[iamkoza]

usage wise.... i'm thinking at most 12 carries, i bet they rotate dwyer in every few drives to handle some of the work, and felix jones serves as 3rd down/passing play RB?

 

[FlapJacks]

My "out of my butt" Prediction

Bell 7 - 19-1 1 -6

FJones 12-57 3 - 22

Dwyer 5 - 20 1-11

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Starting him in one league, just hoping for a TD.

 

[BustedKnuckles]

I just hope he does well and gets thru the game so i can use him with confidence going forward

 

[Legion of Doom]

The Steelers know they need Bell to win right now and bringing him back before the bye tells me he’s healthy and ready to go!

The option to ease him back in was lost with that 0-3 record. They have no choice but to give him a heavy workload IMO.

After today Le’Veon will be the most popular baby name in London and prolly temp the Queen to change the nickname of one of their beloved icons. Now you know why Roethisberger was miffed earlier this week at Bell.

 

[FlapJacks]

What did he do in the preseason? 2 carries 4 yards?

 

[ConnSKINS26]

Starting him in one league, just hoping for a TD.

Okay, I'll take more now.

 

[TheFanatic]

Not a bad start at all!

 

[FlapJacks]

Starting him in one league, just hoping for a TD.

Okay, I'll take more now.

greedy

 

[TheFanatic]

Starting him in one league, just hoping for a TD.

Okay, I'll take more now.

greedy

Damn straight!

 

[TheFanatic]

And we have two TD's to start the career! The YPC is a little low, but I'll take this all day long.

 

[Kenny Powers]

STUD

 

[Bob Magaw]

PIT didn't have a rushing TD in first three games (0-3 start)... bell 2 TDs already early in third quarter...

bell could easily be most productive rookie RB rest of way (bernard has a good shot, too).

 

[Phlash]

Mike Tomlin is going to hammer him in at the redzone rest of season.

I for one am stoked. TD or more a game would be perfectly ok by me.

 

[Doubtingthomas]

Proud owner and starter! #patyourselfonthebackbecausenooneelsewill

 

[TheFanatic]

How many of you thought that Big Ben was going to sneak it from the 6 inch line? I totally expected it. Show to me what Tomlin wants to do. Let the RB take the pounding and keep the QB upright. I like that strategy...