David Carr on the NFL: Le’Veon Bell is simply in the wrong position to get paid

Le’Veon Bell was expected to report for work this week, during the Steelers’ bye. He hasn’t yet, holding out in a contract dispute, and he is just in a tough place.

I don’t know that the market is ever going to be what Bell hopes it will be given the landscape with running backs in the NFL.

The majority of the league has gone to a running back by committee approach. Ex-players who work at the NFL Network, including running backs, say it’s actually always been like that except for the top three or four at the position.

Right now, Bell is one of the top three, along with the Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott and the Rams’ Todd Gurley.

On the other hand, look at the Falcons. They have three or four running backs. Green Bay, three or four running backs. Most teams have a stable of running backs. The Patriots drafted Sony Michel in the first round, but it still seems like their backs alternate series. Sometimes, Michel won’t see the field. It’s James White, or it’s another back.

They roll guys through there, and with any team and its offensive scheme it benefits them to have multiple guys that they can play.

I think the most interesting part about Bell not showing up is that he’s betting that no one else is going to be able to do what he did behind the same offensive line.

But his replacement, James Conner, is seventh in the league in rushing yards per game, has 257 receiving yards and has scored seven touchdowns in six games.

You can hear the Steelers saying, “Why do we need to pay Le’Veon Bell $20 million a year if this guy can do it for $750,000?”

That’s the issue, and it will continue to be an issue because general managers feel like they can get running backs who are undrafted or taken in later rounds – like Kareem Hunt in Kansas City (third round) – and turn him into the league’s leading rusher if they have the proper scheme, a good quarterback and a good offensive line.

It makes it very difficult for a running back to make that $20 million case.

It’s no mystery why. Take Saquon Barkley, for instance. He’s as talented as any guy I’ve seen in the NFL in a long time. But he’s the eighth-best runner by yards per game because his offensive line is so bad, and he’s never going to put up the numbers that he should put up until the Giants fix that.

David Johnson in Arizona is arguably the most talented running back in the league and no one is talking about him. He’s on a bad team that’s not very creative. He’s playing with a young quarterback who’s not really threatening the defense and his offensive line is terrible. So David Johnson is a non-factor. When your offensive line, your quarterback and your scheme are good, then you’re going to be great.

If I was starting a team today, I’d put a good offensive line out there first. I’d even pay for a coach, a guy who is cutting-edge as far as being able to create offense for his team before I would worry about paying a running back $20 million a year. It’s a huge investment, and production just isn’t going to be there unless you have those other pieces.

The Steelers, they have those pieces.

They have a Pro Bowl quarterback. They have a good receiving corps, probably one of the top two duos in the league in Antonio Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster. The tight end has stepped up and the offensive line is elite. Conner is taking full advantage. He’s not as talented as Bell – I’m not going to pretend that he’s as dynamic and as shifty and can do as much as Bell. But Conner is going to have similar production because of all the components that the Steelers have in place.

Question of the week

From Eddie Herevia: How important is keeping things consistent for an NFL QB as in keeping with the same offensive coordinator and or QB coach and all the little things? Regarding the Raiders, in your own opinion should the Raiders have kept Bill Musgrave and not let him leave?

I always point to one team in particular and it’s the Patriots. You see (Tom) Brady. He has had the same system the entire time he has been in the league, whether it’s Charlie Weis or Josh McDaniel or Bill O’Brien as the coordinator. It’s the same system, the same terminology, the same verbiage. That’s the pinnacle of what you would want to achieve for a quarterback and his relationship with his system. Brady’s audibles are the same as they were 10 years ago. That’s such a huge advantage, in clutch situations, to have the entire playbook at your disposal, in your memory bank. It’s priceless.

Peyton Manning is another guy. When he went to Denver they started off doing a lot of things Gary Kubiak wanted to do, but it turned into Manning in the shotgun doing his thing and that’s when they eventually won the Super Bowl.

Bill Musgrave is a good coach. I thought he had a good rapport with Derek. I thought they pushed each other. I know Bill challenged Derek and Derek challenged Bill. There was a little bit of an edge there, but it worked.

But today, coaches change shirts too often. There’s too much turnover. There’s a lot of stress over Jon Gruden’s 10-year contract and what’s going to happen with that. But there’s also a positive because they’re going to run the same stuff, so hopefully as Derek continues to advance his knowledge in Gruden’s system, which is different than what they have done in the past, they’ll continue to get better, they’ll get some pieces around him and they can do some positive things.

This story was originally published October 17, 2018 at 4:16 PM with the headline "David Carr on the NFL: Le’Veon Bell is simply in the wrong position to get paid."