Le'Veon Bell signs with Jets

[T0mShane]

Just now, EM31 said:

How low is the bar really in order to be a contender for a wild card?  If you sit at 6-6 with four to go then your are "contending".

If you buy into the theory that 1 or 2 losses were down to the previous coaching staff I think it is s fairly safe to say that we will be in that picture in year-2 of the Darnold dynasty.  The real question is how paltry would such an achievement be?

It’d be a major, major achievement if Gase kept this team at or above .500 in December, imo.

[Scott Dierking]

Just now, T0mShane said:

I recently ran two 5k’s for the underprivileged. 

I know. You told us. This is my arm reaching across the internet in congratulations and admiration.

Franchise Tag views, please. My breath is baited 

[T0mShane]

Just now, Scott Dierking said:

I know. You told us. This is my arm reaching across the internet in congratulations and admiration.

Franchise Tag views, please. My breath is baited 

The franchise tag is draconian.

[GREENBEAN]

27 minutes ago, JiF said:

Meh, guaranteed is guaranteed.  They didn’t want to play with Big Ben and a franchise that didn’t appreciate them.  They got there way. They won. 

I have to agree with this. AB's situation is incredible. He quite literally forced his way off of a team with 3 years left on his contract, refused to go where he didn't want to, limited the Steeler's options with said refusal, and got a pay raise with more guaranteed money.  I don't like him or the way he did it, but it's a coup. Bell is a little bit different due to the money aspect, but he didn't risk potential injury while waiting for the big guaranteed pay day.  Once again, I don't like how he did it, but he made it through the year with zero wear and tear en route to a 5 year contract with more guarantees. He also has incentive based aspects that can make it $15 mil which is good fr him and really great for the Jets. 

At the end of the day they were able to get off of the team they didn't feel respected them or didn't like the QB or whatever. I don't like the methods but the players are the winners. 

[Scott Dierking]

Just now, T0mShane said:

The franchise tag is draconian.

Would you question someone for fighting the draconian methodology?

[NoBowles]

12 minutes ago, T0mShane said:

The Rust Belt is one giant socialist enterprise. Try not to cut your hand on one of those rusted-out factories because Le’Veon and I are paying for your tetanus shot, bud. 

You’re obviously an intelligent cat, it’s too bad you are so easily influenced by very dark forces.

[UnitedWhofans]

Just now, NoBowles said:

You’re obviously an intelligent cat, it’s too bad you are so easily influenced by very dark forces.

He is clearly the Professor Moriarty of this board

[Scott Dierking]

1 minute ago, GREENBEAN said:

I have to agree with this. AB's situation is incredible. He quite literally forced his way off of a team with 3 years left on his contract, refused to go where he didn't want to, limited the Steeler's options with said refusal, and got a pay raise with more guaranteed money.  I don't like him or the way he did it, but it's a coup. Bell is a little bit different due to the money aspect, but he didn't risk potential injury while waiting for the big guaranteed pay day.  Once again, I don't like how he did it, but he made it through the year with zero wear and tear en route to a 5 year contract with more guarantees. He also has incentive based aspects that can make it $15 mil which is good fr him and really great for the Jets. 

At the end of the day they were able to get off of the team they didn't feel respected them or didn't like the QB or whatever. I don't like the methods but the players are the winners. 

The Steeler organization really helped screw the pooch here. What they have basically told and demonstrated to their players is that Ben Rothlesberger is the only player that matters here, and we are going to create special rules for him, that we will not extend to anyone else. Your talents be damned.

Mike Tomlin did his locker room no favors as well.

 

[Apache 51]

36 minutes ago, JustEndTheSuffering said:

I just can not believe that a true superstar is playing for the New York Jets of all teams. Wow.

True Superstar, please. Well see.  

[sec101row23]

Based on the money Bell got, it suggests there wasn’t a very big market for Bell.  We’ll see how he looks when he shows up for OTA’s.  

[Larz]

Bell tweeted himself in a jets jersey 

So thats pretty positive right? 

 

[Chrebetfan80]

5 hours ago, Untouchable said:

I seriously doubt that happens

Dude is already posting photoshopped pictures of him in a Jets uniform on Instagram.

but its not the new uniform ?

[FloridaJetsFan]

How is making someone the highest paid at their position a "steal"?

He’s not the highest paid. Hurley is


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

[EM31]

Just now, T0mShane said:

It’d be a major, major achievement if Gase kept this team at or above .500 in December, imo.

At this point i would be happy if we landed a coach that can manage the clock and not misplace his timeouts.  My bar for this franchise is pretty low.

With that said, I am typically a glass is half empty guy but I think the Jets get into the conversation this year.  Landing Bell helps but getting him is not a seminal event IMO. 

[JoeWillieWhiteShoesHOF]

7 minutes ago, EM31 said:

How low is the bar really in order to be a contender for a wild card?  If you sit at 6-6 with four to go then your are "contending".

If you buy into the theory that 1 or 2 losses were down to the previous coaching staff I think it is s fairly safe to say that we will be in that picture in year-2 of the Darnold dynasty.  The real question is how paltry would such an achievement be?

Not 1 or 2....easily 4 games that Bowles and his Lieutenant Rogers blew last year (1st MIA game, Cleve, Hou, and GB), that gets you to 8 games won by Sam Darnold, playing practically all by himself.  Don’t forget he also missed 3 games due to injury, which were all losses.

[UnitedWhofans]

1 minute ago, Larz said:

Bell tweeted himself in a jets jersey 

So thats pretty positive right? 

 

Honestly, the fact that the numbers came out means he's not bailing. The numbers didnt come out for Barr

[Lith]

Normally, I would not be in favor of signing a 27 year old RB with as heavy a workolad as Bell had (until last year).  But given our situation, plenty of cap space, few real proven offensive playmakers on the market and the roster, we added the best one available.  I would not have been crushed if we didn't get him, but I am glad we did.  Hopefully his presence helps Sam over these next couple of seasons.  Not sure what the cap hits are in the last two years of his deal, but if we can get two strong seasons out of him, it will be worth it, even if the contract looks bad as he approaches 30.

Now, lets sign Stefen Wisniewski for him to run behind and its been a solid start to FA.

[Lith]

1 minute ago, UnitedWhofans said:

Honestly, the fact that the numbers came out means he's not bailing. The numbers didnt come out for Barr

Still, I will feel better when the Jets tweet out pix of him and Mosley signing their contracts.  I don't expect to get Barr'd again, but will feel better knowing they are signed.

[Chrebetfan80]

53 minutes ago, T0mShane said:

I live in an ascendant metropolis going through the growing pains of aggressive gentrification. 

brooklyn? lol 

[HelenOfTroy]

58 minutes ago, T0mShane said:

It’s “their,” Rufus.

Tommy, you are being very rude.  I’m not pleased. 

[ZachEY]

Don’t love it, but glad Macc didn’t bid against himself.

Bell overplayed his hand here.  Looks like pretty big mistake on his part.

Still need an offensive line.

At worst, should be entertaining to watch - unless of course he quits, which was my concern.  But, not sure he got paid quitting money, so, we’ll see.

[Scott Dierking]

27 minutes ago, Lith said:

Normally, I would not be in favor of signing a 27 year old RB with as heavy a workolad as Bell had (until last year).  But given our situation, plenty of cap space, few real proven offensive playmakers on tehe market and the roster, we added the best one available.  I would not have been crushed if we didn't get him, but I am glad we did.  Hopefully his presence helps Sam over these next couple of seasons.  Not sure what the cap hits are in the last two years of his deal, but if we can get two strong seasons out of him, it will be worth it, even if the contract looks bad as he approaches 30.

Now, lets sign Stefen Wisniewski for him to run behind and its been a solid start to FA.

With you in the Wisniewski camp

[Augustiniak]

1 minute ago, TeddEY said:

Don’t love it, but glad Macc didn’t bid against himself.

Bell overplayed his hand here.  Looks like pretty big mistake on his part.

Still need an offensive line.

At worst, should be entertaining to watch - unless of course he quits, which was my concern.  But, not sure he got paid quitting money, so, we’ll see.

best case scenario, jets trade back and take an OL in the first.  how they address the C position at this point will also be interesting.

[Integrity28]

2 minutes ago, TeddEY said:

Don’t love it, but glad Macc didn’t bid against himself.

Bell overplayed his hand here.  Looks like pretty big mistake on his part.

Still need an offensive line.

At worst, should be entertaining to watch - unless of course he quits, which was my concern.  But, not sure he got paid quitting money, so, we’ll see.

I think he’ll want to be effective thru all the guaranteed portion. Has to have chip on shoulder about losing the $14.5m last year. Fingers crossed.

[More Cowbell]

2 minutes ago, Augustiniak said:

best case scenario, jets trade back and take an OL in the first.  how they address the C position at this point will also be interesting.

Personally inthonknwe should just draft a C in the third.  After Morse and Paradis went off the board, what's  left is not that enticing.  

[Bugg]

The Future is NOW.

Downside; Adam Gase cannot come in here and have a sputtering offense through Columbus Day and babble  about "installing the offense"(a Jet tradition!). He's got a rested versatile beast mode back, a QB who got his feet wet and has to be ready to go from crawling to running, some decent WRs and improved OL. There is no honeymoon here. 

Think Bell in addition to being a 1000+ yard guy can be the go to dumpoff target when the play breaks down. That's a good thing for Darnold. 

As to Bell; only historic comparable of a guy taking a year off is Riggins. Not sure given how long ago that was it has much application, but you hope that precedent holds. . Questions become has Bell stayed in football shape, and is he going to be able to get used to getting hit after a year away from it. You hope but nobody knows but Bell. 

[extmenace]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theringer.com/platform/amp/nfl/2019/3/13/18263367/leveon-bell-new-york-jets-gamble-new-contract-steelers-holdout

Good little article. Can’t copy and paste the article from my phone. Maybe someone else can do it?

 

[Philc1]

Good move signing Bell.  The hysteria over the OL is asinine.

[ChuckkieB]

17 minutes ago, Bugg said:

The Future is NOW.

Downside; Adam Gase cannot come in here and have a sputtering offense through Columbus Day and babble  about "installing the offense"(a Jet tradition!). He's got a rested versatile beast mode back, a QB who got his feet wet and has to be ready to go from crawling to running, some decent WRs and improved OL. There is no honeymoon here. 

 

THIS.  No excuses for this offense to not hit the ground running as of week 1.  

[flgreen]

Suspect if he has a good year we'll be looking at a Revis type hold out next season, but I'll worry about that next season.  For now, great deal 

 

[Philc1]

55 minutes ago, sec101row23 said:

Based on the money Bell got, it suggests there wasn’t a very big market for Bell.  We’ll see how he looks when he shows up for OTA’s.  

Bell killed his value by acting like a baby while the Steelers had 0.0 issue replacing

 

$52 million for Bell, while high for a RB, is semi-reasonable 

[Philc1]

Just now, flgreen said:

Suspect if he has a good year we'll be looking at a Revis type hold out next season, but I'll worry about that next season.  For now, great deal 

 

If Bell has a great year (1,400 yards rushing, 700 yards receiving and 12+ TDS) that means the jets are in the playoffs 

[Philc1]

29 minutes ago, TeddEY said:

Don’t love it, but glad Macc didn’t bid against himself.

Bell overplayed his hand here.  Looks like pretty big mistake on his part.

Still need an offensive line.

At worst, should be entertaining to watch - unless of course he quits, which was my concern.  But, not sure he got paid quitting money, so, we’ll see.

Our OL was not that bad last year. Problem was our WRs were horrible, Sam was a rookie and Bowles sucks

[nycdan]

13 minutes ago, Philc1 said:

Our OL was not that bad last year. Problem was our WRs were horrible, Sam was a rookie and Bowles sucks

Not sure that's a fair portrayal.  Spencer Long was doing his best Imperial Storm Trooper imitation for a few weeks.  We couldn't rush for 2 yards with a gale-force tailwind behind us, and...well you saw the game.  They were pretty bad.

[LIJetsFan]

38 minutes ago, extmenace said:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theringer.com/platform/amp/nfl/2019/3/13/18263367/leveon-bell-new-york-jets-gamble-new-contract-steelers-holdout

Good little article. Can’t copy and paste the article from my phone. Maybe someone else can do it?

 

Le’Veon Bell Lit Some Cash on Fire, but It Was Never About the Money

The new Jets running back won’t make back what he lost by sitting out 2018. If you’d been listening all along, you’d know that’s fine by him.

By Danny Heifetz  Mar 13, 2019, 3:07am EDT

Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

At one point in The Dark Knight, Heath Ledger’s Joker lights a pile of money the size of a bodega on fire. Just as he is about to spark the flame, he looks at the Chechen beside him. “What?” the Joker asks. “I’m only burning my half.”

As the money goes up in flames and the Joker wrests control of Gotham organized crime from the mob, he pulls out his phone.

“It’s not about money,” the Joker says. “It’s about sending a message.”

Le’Veon Bell is the NFL’s Joker, and after sitting out the 2018 season and lighting $14.5 million on fire last year to the utter bewilderment of sports fans (and apoplectic fantasy football owners), he’s finally signed a new contract. Bell parlayed the freedom he so desperately sought into a four-year deal with a $52.5 million base value ($13.25 million per year) with a maximum value of roughly $61 million and $35 million guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Le’Veon Bell Gambled on Himself and Ended Up on the Jets

In terms of average annual value, the contract is less than the $14 million per year contained in Pittsburgh’s reportedfive-year, $70 million offer from last offseason. But Bell told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler in October that the $70 million offer was “Monopoly money” because just $17 million of that total was guaranteed. (Antonio Brown had a similar complaint in Pittsburgh.) The Jets contract has more than double what the Steelers offered in guaranteed money, though the deal still does not come close to making up the $14.5 million he lost by sitting out a season in his prime.

Many will point to Bell’s efforts over the past year and call them an abject failure, and Bell himself has been called many things—selfish, stupid, and much worse. If his attempt is viewed solely through the lens of maximizing his career earnings, it was a failure. But if people had actually listened to what he has said throughout this process (and you don’t have to parse his new rap album to do so), they would know that this has always been about sending a message.

“I’ve made a lot of money, I’m happy where I’m at, I’ve got a good family—I don’t really need to play football,” Bell told Fowler about his contract situation in January 2018. “Right now, I’m just kind of doing it because I love it. Now, I’ve done everything but own a Super Bowl. … I don’t necessarily care about the money aspect of it. I just want to be valued where I’m at. If I am playing this game, I want to set standards for all the other running backs behind me, like Todd Gurley and Ezekiel Elliott, Melvin Gordon, guys like that. I’m a guy they can kind of look at. I feel I can do that. I’m in a position where I can do that, and I’m going to do it.”

Just like the Joker, Bell’s message was about ownership. He told Fowler, that the Steelers’ strategy was clear: Because Bell was set to leave in free agency in 2019, he said, the team was content to give him 400 touches, putting him at serious risk for injury. They had no issue squeezing out the value from him in 2018 because they were not invested in him beyond that. This was not an abstract concern. He’s averaged 398 touches per 16 games (24.9 per game) since his rookie year in 2013. With his health in the balance, he took control of the situation.

“It sucks having to sit out football,” Bell told Fowler when many—including Bell—still expected he might play in 2018. “I want to play. I want to win games and the playoffs. But I’ve gotta take this stand. Knowing my worth and knowing I can tear a ligament or get surgery at any time, I knew I couldn’t play 16 games with 400 or more touches.”

That sentiment sounds strikingly similar to free-agent safety Earl Thomas’s problems with Seattle that he laid out in The Players’ Tribune last year.

“If you’re risking your body to deliver all of this value to an organization, then you deserve some sort of assurance that the organization will take care of you if you get hurt,” Thomas wrote in August. “It’s that simple. This isn’t new, and this isn’t complicated. It’s the reason I’m holding out—I want to be able to give my everything, on every play, without any doubt in my mind.”

Thomas ended his 2018 season by flipping the bird toward the Seahawks sideline as he was carted off with a broken leg in Week 4.

Bell’s agent, Adisa Bakari, might be the only person getting ripped over Bell’s decision to skip out on $14.5 million more than the player himself. But Bakari, who gives each of his rookie clients a copy of William Rhoden’s Forty Million Dollar Slaves, told The Undefeated’s Jesse Washington in October that he sees a double standard.

“It’s always interesting to me when players make a hard business stance they are vilified, and deemed to be greedy and irrational and whatever, and there’s a little tinge I think associated with black players doing it,” Bakari said. “It just sounds different when I hear some of the critiques. It feels different. I’m not saying that is definitely the case, but you very rarely hear [the critiques] when the Tom Bradys or Aaron Rodgers of the world take a very hard stance as it relates to their value.”

Bell is not going to make up the $14.5 million he lost. But he had the opportunity to send a message, and he tried, though the message was clearly lost in translation. Still, that’s more than most star NFL players have done, and it’s not clear why so many onlookers are mad. After all, he only burned his half.