For whom the Bell tolls
Commentary by PalmerSucks
November 6, 2015
The Stillers’ season took a devastating blow when they placed All-Everything back Le’Veon Bell on year-ending injured reserve. But was this a knockout punch, or just a painful body shot?
Last season the team was screwed when it lost Bell and went into its playoff game with no viable option at running back. The Stillers learned their lesson and wisely signed DeAngelo Williams to cover such losses in the future. However, cover doesn’t mean the same thing as “replace” because frankly there is no replacing a back with Bell’s versatility and almost bizarre ability to turn losses into positive yards.
Coach Tomlin announced the team would “rally around” Williams and talked about how they would attempt to replicate his skill set by committee. That sounds a lot like last year, right before the Stillers’ offensive showing against Baltimore proved there is no substitute for what Bell brings. (I covered this last year in a pre-game if you care to browse the archives.)
In my mind there are three players the Stillers can’t afford to lose without seriously jeopardizing their hopes of reaching the Super Bowl: Ben, Bell and Brown, aka the “Killer B’s” (with Martavis Bryant a close fourth). By my math that reduces the Stillers chances of getting to the Big Game by a third. I know I picked the Stillers to go to the Bowl and I hold on to that hope, but reality is reality.
Football is unlike any sport in that injuries determine a team’s record as much as talent. In baseball or basketball you can fairly count on having your basic roster all season, but football’s a revolving door, players getting hurt and leaving and returning. Some don’t make it to the returning part, which is why making predictions about football teams so tricky.
I love Williams, but even if he puts up 100 yard efforts it still won’t be equal to what Bell brings. Don’t be fooled by raw production; it’s the situational intangibles that matter. What other back besides Bell converts that ridiculous last play against San Diego? You can forget plays like that happening again this season.
All you can do is hope the passing game picks up the slack, which of course will be more difficult as you lose the balance Bell brings. I was asked last Sunday if I had to make the awful choice between losing Bell and Antonio Brown for the year, which poison I’d pick. For the sake of optimism I’ll say Bell, though he represents a more central part of the offense. We’re about to find out if that optimism is supported.
One positive: the Stillers loss against Cincy isn’t as devastating to their playoff hopes as the loss of Bell is. With Denver and New England both posting 7-0 records, the bye week is likely spoken for anyway. All the Stillers would be working for, even with, say, a respectable 11-5 finish, is to secure a home game for the wild-card round. The Stillers hope would be to see Cincy finish strong but not too strong, allowing them a shot to face playoff-gagger Dalton in the opening round.
The Stillers brought in Isaiah Pead to add to their stable of running backs. Pead’s 40 time is officially 4.47, but I’ve also seen a listing as low as 4.39. As great as Bell is, the one thing he’s always lacked is the breakway gear. If the Stillers can once in a while get a home run off the running back position, Bell’s loss would be lessened.
This has been a strange and surprising season. The defense which everyone feared has actually turned out to be a bright spot. If anything, it’s the offense that’s let the team down. The Stillers won’t be going anywhere unless they can develop consistency on offense and convert that into point production. If they have any shot of recovering from Bell’s loss it will be by fine-tuning a passing game utilizing their deep stable of wide receivers (which just expanded by one; see the notes section at the end of this commentary). Involving Heath Miller more would help – it needn’t be bombs-away all the time.
The Stillers will show they’ve arrived as a contender when they can put together three respectable scoring games in a row – which is what they’re going to have to do to reach the Super Bowl, anyway. So they might as well get started now.
So is Bell’s loss a season killer? It might well be -- unless the Stillers can do one thing: ramp up their passing game to the elite level where we all think it’s supposed to be. Stopping their own drives with stupid mistakes – especially deep in the opponents’ territory -- wouldn’t hurt either.
The Stillers’ true season starts Sunday against a decent Raiders team they’ve struggled with even when Oakland’s stunk. Right now the Raiders represent the Stillers’ main competition for a playoff spot, so the stakes are high. Khalil Mack and friends have laid the wood, but note that they rank nearly last in pass defense. The Stillers can show they’re moving on from Bell’s loss with a big aerial showing Sunday.
NOTES: The Stillers finally activated Doran Grant off the street-clothes squad. Grant’s another draft favorite of mine, and along with Ross Cockrell gives the Stillers a promising young talent base at the CB slot. Grant showed great route-recognition instincts in camp, and has the football instincts to contribute at safety if necessary.
Finally, I can contain neither my glee nor my laughter over the signing of Jacoby Jones, aka the “real MVP of Super Bowl XLVII.” Great news for the Stillers, not so great news for poor Joe Flacco. The Dri Archer experiment comes to its merciful end, and the team goes from a guy who has no clue about returning kicks to the man whose kick returns helped create the most overpaid athlete in American sports history. Let’s not forget the awesome irony that Jones is now playing for, of all people, Mike “Sideline Dancer” Tomlin. Jones also can pitch in at receiver, and, once he learns the playbook, might make a nice alternative to Heyward-Bey.