Le’Veon Bell returns to the field Sunday against St. Louis (Getty).
It felt like an eternity to Steelers fans, but Le’Veon Bell has finished his two-game suspension and is ready to return to the field. Bell has spent the offseason trimming down, and tweeted his physical this summer revealing he’s below 3% body fat. Slimmer or not, Bell will add more horsepower to an offense that is already firing on all cylinders.
What’s that you say? Where does DeAngelo Williams fit into this situation? Truthfully, he doesn’t. Bell is a true every-down back; a player who excels at blocking as much as he does catching passes.
Williams knows his role, having spent almost a decade splitting carries in Carolina. However, it shouldn’t be forgotten how good Williams has looked these past two weeks. He carved the Patriots on opening night, and terrorized a normally stout 49ers defense, banging home three short touchdowns.
The only losers in this situation will be fantasy owners. The Williams owners are seeing the end of what was a magical start to the season, and Bell owners are cautiously excited about the return of arguably the league’s best rusher.
For Sunday’s matchup, it’s possible that Bell will be worked back onto the field slowly. Still, with his talent, it’s more likely than not he comes in and immediately handles the full load. And that will provide a huge boost to fantasy owners who bit the two-week bullet.
Two quotes from earlier in the week should provide some confidence to Bell owners:
From Mike Tomlin: “If Bell is available, we will use him.”
From Ben Roethlisberger: “Le’Veon doesn’t like to come out of the game.”
Case Closed. The Steelers kickoff against St. Louis at 1 p.m. EST.