JETS TOP 20
No. 5 Le’Veon Bell
The 2020 Jets hope to kick off the new decade by snapping a nine-year playoff drought.
There was plenty of roster turnover this offseason, but the question remains: Does new necessarily mean better?
Tom Brady’s departure ostensibly gives hope to the rest of the AFC East, but will the Jets be the team to knock the Patriots off their perch as division rulers?
I’ll be revealing my Top 20 players on the roster every weekday for the next four weeks in the run-up to training camp.
This list is made up of the players who I believe will have the greatest impact for Adam Gase’s team this season. The ranking isn’t simply based on a player’s resume. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
So, we’re peering into our crystal ball and taking some leaps of faith. There’s some quality young talent on Gang Green’s roster. Some of those guys are poised to take their games to the next level.
Get ready for some surprises.
No. 5: LE’VEON BELL
2019 ranking: 4 Position: Running back
Age at the start of the season: 28
2020 salary cap charge: $10 million
Contract status: Second year of a 4-year, $52.5 million deal 2019 Season in Review:
Bell had a nightmarish campaign after a year-long hiatus that prompted him to bolt from Pittsburgh in free agency. The three-time Pro Bowler was deployed in the exact wrong way en route to a career-low 3.2 yards per carry. Gase, who didn’t want to sign the game-changing running back in the first place, never figured out how to best use one of the game’s most dynamic dual-threat weapons.
Bell, who had averaged 129 total yards per game in five seasons with the Steelers, took a massive statistical hit in his first season with the Jets. His total yards per game dropped by 35%. He finished with 17.5% fewer rush attempts per game, 17% fewer touches per game, 19% fewer targets per game and 12.5% fewer catches per game than his career averages.
The Jets were hoping to move Bell, who averaged a career-low 16.3 carries per game, before the trade deadline. However, his exorbitant contract made a trade impossible.
2020 Outlook: Joe Douglas, who inherited Bell from former general manager Mike Maccagnan, would have dealt the running back in the offseason if he had any takers. Since he didn’t, it would be in everyone’s best interest to maximize Bell’s skill set before the inevitable divorce after this season (when Bell’s guaranteed money runs out).
Will Gase, who subscribes to a spread-the-wealth offensive philosophy, run his scheme through Bell? Will the head coach offer more than lip service again about playing to Bell’s strengths?
Team brass hopes the offensive line makeover will help matters. Bell ranked 44th out of 45 qualified running backs in yards before contact per carry last season (1.17 yards), according to Pro Football Reference. He never got in sync with the guys up front for myriad reasons.
Although it’s true that Bell struggled against a loaded box, he faced eight or more defenders in the box only 17.14% of the time (29th), according to NFL’s Next Gen Stats.
Scheme was the primary culprit for his disappointing season.
Bell, who made a Pro Bowl career out of dominating out of the I-formation, ran the ball out of shotgun 42.7% of the time last season. By comparison, he ran out of shotgun 27% of the time when he racked up
1,291 yards and nine touchdowns in his final season with Pittsburgh.
The Jets are hoping to run more outside-zone plays this season. Only 6% of Bell’s carries last season were outside-zone, according Sports Info Solutions. Gang Green believes it has athletic enough tackles now to make it work. Bell’s superior vision and terrific change of direction allows him to press one gap before taking another.
However, it’s unlikely that Bell will get a heavier workload this season.
Gase’s decision to sign 37year-old Frank Gore clouds the division of labor in the backfield. Although Bell will be the primary back, I have some prime Florida swampland that might interest you if you believe Gore was added to just hang out on the sideline sipping Champagne coolies.
Gore has had at least 125 carries in each of his 15 seasons. If healthy, he’ll make it 16 in a row. (Bilal Powell had the second-most carries for Gang Green last season with 59).
Translation: Gase is looking to cut into Bell’s career-low carries from last season. Will the coach make up for it by giving Bell more action in the passing game?
Bell can still be a dynamic weapon if the play-caller lets him be one. A divorce is coming. In the meantime, both the player and coach can help each other.
NEXT ON THE COUNTDOWN:
A supreme talent looking to prove himself.