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so what is Bell worth now?

The cap is supposed to rise 8-10 million, it's tough because of Bells suspension, yeah it's 4 games but as we are seeing this season just 1 game can ruin your season. What is the franchise tag for wr? Brown is what 28? Do we sign him long term not knowing how long Ben sticks around?
 
No way he gets paid. He has slowed down. Donovan McNabb says so.
 
Bell is a unique football player with talents that are not just as a runner. I can easily envision another team valuing him the same way and would be willing to dump 2 first rounders to get him. If that is the case, the Steelers may have to be a little more aggressive in their contract negotiation. If that's the way the Steelers see it, I can see $12M a season being a distinct possibility. The good thing is, next year we have the cap room to afford it!

The Pats with a 40 years old Brady and $60M of cap space will gladly pay Bell $16M a year to potentially grab a couple more SBs. It's not like the Pats had a #1 pick last year...zero effect on their performance and they would add the ultimate multi-tool RB. If you want to keep him....pay him.
 
Offer 10M/yr for 4 yrs with the option of a 5th. Bell will be 25 this Feb and the downside (dropoff in production based on wear/age) comes in 3 yrs. Some running backs that are around 28-29 yrs of age:

Jamaal Charles, Chris Johnson, Steve Slaton, Ray Rice, Darren McFadden, Matt Forte, Jonathan Stewart, Justin Forsett...........
 
Not exactly reassuring when part of the settlement was negotiating the terms of his next suspension.
It was to me because it led me to believe he wasn't testing positive just missed the tests.. if he was doing both missing test and testing positive on the make up tests there would be no settlement

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The Pats with a 40 years old Brady and $60M of cap space will gladly pay Bell $16M a year to potentially grab a couple more SBs. It's not like the Pats had a #1 pick last year...zero effect on their performance and they would add the ultimate multi-tool RB. If you want to keep him....pay him.

Why would they back the money truck up for him when they do just fine with Blount and filler ? As long as they have Brady, Gronk, Edelman, scrubs and employ cheating, they wont need a prime all-league running back. That's not how they roll.
 
That is best determined at the end of the season / early offseason before the free agency period starts.
 
Make him the highest paid RB in the NFL or he is gone. Then you draft Barkley PSU RB in the 3rd or 4th round if he enters the draft

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All the years with Mendenhall and guys like Jonathan Dwyer.:dejection: They should remember those years when it comes to signing Bell.
You pay him like he's the best running back in the league, and your best receiver not named Antonio Brown. Steelers have a chance to keep the best trio in the league and once Ben is gone it could be another 30 year dry spell. Pay him whatever it takes. Its perfectly clear, this team can't win in the playoffs without him.
I wouldn't trade Bell for the Steelers last five first round picks.
 
Another positive testing would result in a full year suspension, correct? I think that should play a big role in the contract negotiation. Can't afford to be giving big money if he isn't going to be on the field because of suspensions.
I believe that is incorrect. I believe part of the deal with the suspension reduction was avoiding court (cause there was some grey area with the case if you recall) was that he is still on the bottom rung of the ladder while still in the system. Next one is still 4 games I believe.
 
Why would they back the money truck up for him when they do just fine with Blount and filler ? As long as they have Brady, Gronk, Edelman, scrubs and employ cheating, they wont need a prime all-league running back. That's not how they roll.

Gronk is breaking down. Also, in three of the 4 Pats SB wins they had a 1000 rusher in those years (Antowain Smith and Corey Dillon)...they didn't win with the all-out air attack in the Moss years. The only outlier was 2014 when they didn't have a 1000 rusher but only won that SB due to the worst offense playcall in the history of the NFL. The Pats would love to have Bell for $16M....you think the Steelers would be happy with 2 late round first round picks and Bell going to NE?
 
Still cant believe we passed on Eddie Lacy for this clown. **** you Tombert!!!
 
I think what ever the contract he is given they need to make a stipulation that anymore suspensions for controlled substances mean he is automatically cut and he forfeits the upfront money.
 
I think what ever the contract he is given they need to make a stipulation that anymore suspensions for controlled substances mean he is automatically cut and he forfeits the upfront money.

The "Weed clause".............
 
The only way the Steelers don't keep Bell is if they don't want him. They never shy away from paying top players top dollar and Bell will be no different. If they don't think he's worth that type of investment, they'll make a token offer and let him walk...after they exhaust their tags, of course.
 
I think what ever the contract he is given they need to make a stipulation that anymore suspensions for controlled substances mean he is automatically cut and he forfeits the upfront money.

I'd like to see that, too, but I'd be willing to be someone else will be willing to offer the same or more $ without the clause.
 
Would the 2 first round picks be a bad thing though? Having a healthy Bell in his prime should be priority #1 but he's also 1 suspension away from taking a Bryant-esque sabbatical and he's coming off 2 major knee surgeries within the last few years. RB's have proven to have a notoriously short shelf life of 4-5 years of top play at most before dropping off big time. I'd just hate to overpay for Bell and be handcuffed salary cap wise for the next 4-5 years when looking at RB history, his production is bound to drop off heavily in as little as 2-3 years. 2 1st rounders also give you the best shot at hand picking Ben's replacement should one be worthy after this years draft.

I'm just saying I don't think the chance of someone stealing Bell for 2 first rounders is seen as a negative and they shouldn't give him a couple million more per year just because the chance exists. If a team offered 2 first rounders for Bell next offseason, I'd think twice about saying no (unless it's the Pats, Ravens or Bengals). Not because of Bell's ability (he's clearly the best back in the NFL right now), but because of the short life of the position especially given his injury/suspension history.

Yeah id trade him for two firsts... I always thought rbs are typically a dime a dozen and while he is special, two firsts can really set up Post ben era and its not so hard to replace that you doom the team in the short run...
 
he isn't going anywhere.... the ones the Steelers really want to keep, they do.

They will tag him and give him good money.
 
Yeah id trade him for two firsts... I always thought rbs are typically a dime a dozen and while he is special, two firsts can really set up Post ben era and its not so hard to replace that you doom the team in the short run...

This is generally the case, but the Steelers sure have been in a world of hurt when he's been out of the lineup. Williams was a great backup, but he's been the exception rather than the rule.
 
Steelers’ Bell could surpass the original ‘Juice’

By Dale Lolley
December 13, 2016

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell (26) leaps over Buffalo Bills cornerback Ronald Darby (28) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
PITTSBURGH - Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin started calling star running back Le’Veon Bell “Juice” in the 2015 offseason in part because he ran so much like the original “Juice,” O.J. Simpson.

Or maybe it’s because he seems to run on an unending supply of electricity.

Either way, it has turned out to be a fitting name.

At his current pace, Bell would break Simpson’s NFL record for yards from scrimmage per game average of 160.2 set in a 14-game regular season in 1975.

After going for a career-high 298 yards from scrimmage in last Sunday’s 27-20 win at Buffalo, ironically, where Simpson spent his NFL career, Bell is averaging 161.6 yards from scrimmage per game.

Up next for Bell and the Steelers (8-5) will be a meeting with the Cincinnati Bengals (5-7-1), a team that has ended his season in each of the previous two years.

In 2014, Bell suffered a sprained knee in the first half of a Week 17 game against the Bengals on a hit by safety Reggie Nelson that forced him to miss the Steelers’ playoff game against Baltimore.

Last year, Bell suffered a torn MCL and PCL on a tackle by linebacker Vontaze Burfict Nov. 1 that ended his season.

Bell isn’t concerned with those injuries. He’s more focused on helping the Steelers win the AFC North, something that was helped by Baltimore’s loss Monday night in New England that left the Ravens one-game behind Pittsburgh with three to play.

“We know what’s at stake here,” Bell said. “We can’t have any time for setbacks. We can’t pat ourselves on the back after a good win or good performance.

“Next week is going to be a tough game. It’s an AFC North opponent, so we have to get ready for that.”

Bell, 24, has had monster seasons in the past. In 2014, for example, he set a team record with 2,215 yards from scrimmage.

But even then, he didn’t make the impact he has this season, particularly in the past four games. Bell hasn’t just been part of the Steelers’ offense, Pittsburgh has run everything through him.

Tomlin said that has just been the natural progression as Bell has matured as a player.

“All areas,” Tomlin said of where he’s seen Bell improve. “Intellectually, understanding of the game, not necessarily what it is he does, but how it fits into the bigger picture. The intellectual conversations with him are much different today than they were then.

“Just understanding how to play the position, the nuances of the position, the protection of the ball and the protection of himself. He’s a guy who’s got some talent. But equally or more importantly than that talent, he’s got a desire to be great and some work ethic to boot. He’s a much better conditioned athlete today than he was in 2014. So I mean it when I say, all areas.”

Though they won’t say it publicly, that also would include off the field.

Bell was suspended for the first two games of the 2015 season after being arrested for a DUI and marijuana possession in August, 2014. He then was suspended three games to open this season for missing three mandatory drug tests at the end of the 2015 regular season - when he was rehabbing a knee injury - and in the ensuing offseason.

Bell passed multiple drug tests in the offseason, including a court-mandated one that helped get the incident expunged from his record, but was suspended for the first three games of this season.


Missing those three games will cost Bell an opportunity to set the NFL’s all-time record for yards from scrimmage in a season of 2,509 set in 2009 by Chris Johnson of Tennessee, but he can take solace in the fact Johnson averaged 156.8 yards per game that season, five yards fewer than what Bell’s 2016 average.

He also can point to the fact the Steelers are playing well and he’s been the catalyst.

“I just think my work ethic really shows,” said Bell of being a workhorse. “I don’t think there are a lot of backs that can do the things that I can do.”

Odds and end zones

Tomlin said guard B.J. Finney, who started last week in place of injured Ramon Foster, had concussion symptoms following the win over the Bills and has been placed in the league’s concussion protocol. … Nose tackle Javon Hargrave, who missed last week’s game, also remains in concussion protocol. … Tomlin said Foster (chest), running back DeAngelo Williams (knee) and safety Shamarko Thomas (concussion) all have a good chance to play this week. … Wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey (foot) likely will be out.

http://www.observer-reporter.com/20...original_x2018juicex2019#.WFBbssyZzd0.twitter
 
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