Pittsburgh Steelers sign 2nd round pick Le’Veon Bell
By Matt Shetler
Now that Willie Colon’s release became official on June 1, the Pittsburgh Steelers have a little bit of money to start signing some of their draft picks.
They did that Monday afternoon when they came to terms on a contract with second-round pick running back Le’Veon Bell.
May 3, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers 2013 second round draft pick running back Le
The Michigan State product signed a four-year deal and now that he is inked, all eyes will be on Bell to see him he can win the No. 1 running back job out of training camp.
Bell ran for 3,346 yards and 33 touchdowns during his career at Michigan State and will have to beat out Jonathan Dwyer and Isaac Redman for playing time as a rookie, which shouldn’t be too difficult if Bell lives up to the hype.
It should help his cause that he is perceived as a three-down back thanks to his ability to both pass block and catch the ball out of the backfield for a team that likes to throw the ball. That’s something that neither Redman nor Dwyer do well.
The Steelers averaged only a paltry 3.7 yards per carry in 2012, their lowest average since 2008 and a clear reason why the team addressed running back early in the draft. If Bell gives them better production than they got last year, the Steelers’ chances of bettering their record will greatly improve. But to do that, they must finish better than 26th in the NFL in rushing.
You hate to put that much pressure on a rookie, but the Steelers need Bell to be very good right out of the gates.
The signing of Bell means that the Steelers have now signed six of their nine draft choices.