Don't Expect a Career Revival from Le'Veon Bell in Baltimore

Editor's Note: This was published before it was announced (via NFL Network's Ian Rapoport) that Gus Edwards sustained a potentially significant knee injury in Thursday's practice. 

Four years ago, Le'Veon Bell tallied nearly 1,300 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on an NFL-high 321 carries. 

Now, he's just looking to get his career back on track.

After Bell flamed out in Kansas City last season, he joined the Baltimore Ravens' practice squad on Tuesday. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported he is "likely to be added to the 53-man roster when ready."

However, he projects to make a minimal impact if or when that happens.

Bell's name still resonates in NFL circles given his track record of production in the mid-2010s. However, his career started to go off the rails when he sat out of the entire 2018 season while holding out for a new deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers never caved. Instead, they elected to let his contract expire and move on that offseason.

The New York Jets signed Bell to a four-year, $52.5 million contract in March 2019. But when he finally got back on the field, he hardly looked like the dynamic playmaker who made a trio of Pro Bowls and a pair of first-team All-Pro teams in Pittsburgh.

After finishing with 789 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 245 carries during his during his first season in the Big Apple, Bell became almost a complete nonfactor the following year. The Jets released him in mid-October after he mustered only 74 rushing yards on 19 carries in two games.

The Kansas City Chiefs quickly scooped up the veteran, but he never regained his Steelers form with them, either. He rushed for only 254 yards and a pair of touchdowns in nine appearances, including a paltry two totes during the team's playoff run.

Bell couldn't even find his way onto the field after running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire suffered an ankle injury late in the season. The Chiefs instead gave the lion's share of work to Darrel Williams during Edwards-Helaire's absence. Bell ended up as a healthy scratch in the AFC Championship Game and received zero snaps while active for the Super Bowl.

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Bell appeared to be on his way out of the league when he didn't latch on with a team for most of this offseason. However, the Ravens wound up signing him after losing starting running back J.K. Dobbins and backup Justice Hill to season-ending injuries during the preseason.

Baltimore fans shouldn't expect Bell to take over their backfield anytime soon, though. The Ravens will go into the 2021 season with Gus Edwards—who led them in carries last year—as the starter. Former practice squad member Ty'Son Williams will be his primary backup.

Edwards is an ideal early-down and short-yardage back in Baltimore's ground-based attack, as he proved last year when he piled up 723 yards and six scores on 144 totes. Williams has yet to appear in a regular-season game, but the BYU product's preseason play was promising. He ripped off numerous big gains and flashed potential as a pass-catching and third-down back.

With both of those critical duties filled, Bell will struggle to find a regular place within the Ravens offense. He'll need time to learn the playbook after joining the team so late in the offseason and will likely only see the field when the players ahead of him need a rest. Barring another injury to Baltimore's backfield platoon, Bell might not even have a real chance to earn a more prominent role.

If Bell does manage to ascend the depth chart, Baltimore likely won't be getting anything close to the dynamic player he was in Pittsburgh. He had a perfect opportunity to show he still had something left in the tank last year with the Chiefs. His failure to do so doesn't bode well for his future production.

Don Wright/Associated Press

Father Time will be one of the biggest hurdles that the 29-year-old Bell will have to overcome. According to Mike Braude of APEX Fantasy Leagues, most running backs experience a noticeable drop-off in production during their age 29-seasons.

Braude looked at 74 "prime seasons"—defined as 250 fantasy points or more in points-per-reception formats—from running backs over the last decade. He found that 95.95 percent of those prime campaigns came before the age of 29. He also found that since 2000, only 5.75 percent of the 226 "peak seasons"—meaning a back scored at least 230 PPR points—occurred at the age of 29.  

Bell might not even catch on as Baltimore's third back. The team recently signed Trenton Cannon to its 53-man roster—although he's most likely to fill a special teams role—while Latavius Murray is interested in working out after his release from the New Orleans Saints, per NFL insider Josina Anderson.

With the deck stacked against him, Baltimore shouldn't bet on Bell returning to the player he was once was. He's now years removed from his prime and hasn't shown anything to suggest that will change in 2021.