Le’Veon Bell, and well the Jets in general, had a forgetful season. Sam Darnold for the first half of the season had mono and it was over from there. Le’Veon Bell used to be an elite RB both in fantasy and just in general. It seems that narrative has changed since he left the Steelers. He really didn’t help the Jets or fantasy owners in 2019. Could he bounce back in 2020?
Le’Veon Bell 2019
Le’Veon Bell didn’t do bad to start the season, he even had two 20 point games to start the season. But it seems to take a turn for the worst when Sam Darnold was gone. When the starting QB goes down, most defenses will focus on the RB, which is what happened to Bell. I can’t blame him fully. But, there are some concerning aspects for Bell. He never rushed over 100 yards last year. He only reached over 70 yards or more 3 times in 15 games. With only one game over 75 yards. He never scored over 1 TD in a game. Bell only had 4 TDs total in rushing and receiving. These are all things concerning with Bell. Throw in the fact that Adam Gase wants to lower his workload, those numbers could be worse.
With cons, there are some pros though. He still had 750 yards rushing despite the adversity the Jets had to overcome. He still had 66 receptions (if you play PPR in your fantasy league) and almost had 500 yards receiving for a RB. Bell was top 10 for RBs in receptions and receiving yards. Despite all these adversity, he still was the 16th best fantasy RB last year in PPR leagues.
Final Assessment
There shouldn’t be any excuse for Le’Veon Bell this year and lack of production. He gets back Sam Darnold for the whole year, and even if he gets sick again, Joe Flacco is the backup. Through all that, he was the almost a top 15 fantasy RB. There’s not a chance he doesn’t improve this year. He could be pushing for a top 10 fantasy RB spot if he plays his cards right. I would say right now that he is a solid RB2. He could be a steal if he does get better this season. I would make sure you have your RB1 first and a lot of the other RBs are gone before drafting him.
