By Cody Smith
Former New York Jets running back Le’Veon Bell is headed to a new home, and it's with last year’s Super Bowl champions.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com, Bell and the Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to a deal, with contract details yet to be released.
Bell came to fantasy football stardom with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he was drafted in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft. Bell and the Steelers parted ways following the 2018 season in which he did not play at all after the Steelers placed their second consecutive franchise tag on him, rather than reaching terms on a new contract.
Bell sat out the entire season and joined the New York Jets in the 2019 season, signing a four-year, $52.5 million contract that included $35 million guaranteed.
Not even two full years into that deal, Bell was released by the Jets after missing three of the first five games of the 2020 season due to injury. He never notching a 100-yard rushing game in his tenure with the team.
Bell escapes the confines of an Adam Gase led offense – an offense where player's fantasy hopes and dreams go to die – and finds himself in Kansas City, where the Chiefs add him to a backfield with rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. It will be interesting to see what exactly Bell’s role will be on the team, but with Andy Reid’s ability to create plays to get the ball in specific players hands, Bell should certainly see his fair share of touches.
The one thing we know for certain is that Darrel Williams and Darwin Thompson are now useless and can be dropped in any leagues they are owned.
The Chiefs are 4-1 on the season and are currently the 13th best team in the league in rushing-yards-per-game (119). Bell brings the pedigree of a running back who has caught at least 66 passes in ever season where he has played at least 12 games.
Perhaps Bell sees the bulk of the pass-catching work out of the backfield, as CEH has caught just three passes in each of the last two weeks and failed to catch a pass in his NFL debut in Week 1. Bell can also be used on the goal line – an area where CEH has struggled – as he has produced just one rushing touchdown on the year.
Bell should be a nice change-of-pace back and provide at least flex worth numbers for your fantasy team going forward. Hold him for now unless you have a Chiefs fan in your league willing to overpay.
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