“Big” Bell compliments “Big Ben” in Steelers offense

by Joe Kuzma (joe_kuzma) on January 10, 2017

Have you ever heard the old cliche, “There is no ‘I’ in team”?

I’m sure the Pittsburgh Steelers subscribe to this and other mantras (such as, “The Standard is the Standard”) as we know all too well, but this season, it’s very evident that the Steelers play a team game which can rely on one or more components to step up their game in the absence of one of those players having a down game.

Enter Le’Veon Bell.

Everywhere you looked or listened, there was talk about how Bell would be a huge addition to the Steelers in the postseason, and we saw his impact when healthy for the regular season (barring the 3 games he missed due to suspension).

But what about those games when, arguably the franchise’s best quarterback in history, doesn’t have an all-time best performance?

We’re talking about, what happens when Ben Roethlisberger, a.k.a. “Big Ben”, doesn’t have a “big” game?

Well, I’d like to offer that we don’t just have a “Big Ben” on the roster, but we also have a “Big Bell”. When Ben is bad, Bell is at his best.

It’s no coincidence, but this streak of Bell stepping up when Ben is “bad”, began when the Steelers current 8-game started against the Cleveland Browns.

In that game, the Steelers played in their first cold weather elements of the season, winning a 24-9 contest on the road. Roethlisberger wasn’t “bad” but his numbers were otherwise pedestrian: 23/36 for 167 yards, no touchdowns, and also no interceptions.

Bell’s game was elevated in that game, rushing 28 times for 146 yards and a touchdown, while adding 8 receptions for 55 yards.

Ben followed up his zero TD/INT day in Cleveland several nights later, playing on a short week in Indianapolis on Thanksgiving Day. Once again, Ben had an awkward stat line, tossing three touchdowns and no picks, but only attempting 20 passes. Ben was “big” in that regard, as his 14/20 completion percentage with the aforementioned passing stats gave him a 146.0 rating on the day.

Bell would attempt more runs in this game than Ben did passes, rushing 23 times for 120 yards and a TD, and also catching 4 of Roethlisberger’s passes for 22 yards.

Big Ben, and Big Bell in Indy.

Following the mini-bye, the Steelers returned home to square off against the New York Giants. Ben would go 24-of-36 for 289 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception.

Once again, Bell would rack up all-purpose yards, with 118 rushing and 64 receiving.

So far, so good for 2/3 of the Killer B’s, until Ben had a “bad” game in Buffalo. In his worst game of the year, Big Ben had a bad three interception showing, with no touchdowns and a 37.8 QB rating.

That would be enough to do in any team… that would be, any team that doesn’t have Le’Veon Bell on the same roster.

“Big” Bell would have one of the biggest days in NFL history, piling up 298 all-purpose yards against the Bills, and a hat trick with three rushing touchdowns. The numbers have only been put up one other time in the league’s existence, by Jim Brown: considered one of, if not the greatest running back of all time.

The streak continued into Cincinnati, where the Bengals couldn’t contain the Steelers running back, but did a better job than their predecessors. Bell would still eclipse over 100 yards from scrimmage; 93 yards rushing and 38 receiving.

Ben would throw for 286 yards and a single touchdown with no turnovers.

We’ll call that “Even Steven” on contributing to a win in a hostile environment, but it wasn’t just Ben who needed vindication from a bad game in a similar environment earlier in the season. The Steelers would seek revenge against the Baltimore Ravens, at home on Christmas Day.

Ben would have a much better game than before, throwing for 279 yards and 3 touchdowns (despite 2 interceptions) while Bell, who was previously held to his lowest totals of the season in his first encounter with the Ravens, would open up for 122 yards on the ground, and 3 grabs for 15 yards in the air, while scoring both a rushing and receiving touchdown.

Big time play from both “big” players.

Each would sit and rest in the Steelers Week 17 regular season finale against Cleveland, before getting back to work in the AFC Wild Card game against the Miami Dolphins, another “redemption” game for Ben and Bell.

Ben would start off smoking hot, throwing 2 touchdowns and completing his first 11 passes, before ruining his perfect passer rating with a pick.

Ben was still “big” despite two interceptions on the day, and only 18 pass attempts: Bell was arguably “bigger”, setting a franchise playoff record with 167 rushing yards, while scoring 2 rushing touchdowns and catching 2 passes for an additional 7 yards.

There was a stretch of the game where the Steelers handed the ball off to Bell ten straight times en route to Bell’s first score of the game.

While Ben has been big in game this year, it’s good to know that when he’s not his hottest, there’s another star capable of being big in his place. Since Antonio Brown having a good game is tied to Ben doing the same, that burden shifts to Bell, who has more than held up his end.

During this season, Le’Veon Bell not only set the franchise record for rushing yards a postseason game, but also owns the regular season mark as well. Bell also eclipsed 5,000 yards from scrimmage; a Steelers record for the fewest games played to reach the milestone.

He also eclipsed 100 all-purpose yards in seven consecutive games, and in 11 of the 12 games he played this season. Those numbers would average to at least 100 rushing yards, and at least 50 receiving yards, per game: the first player in NFL history to average at least 100/50 per game in a single season.

Below is how Bell ranked in several statistical categories in the NFL for the 2016 season: