The Pittsburgh Steelers will once again kick off a season without star running back Le’Veon Bell.
Last year saw Bell serve a two-game ban for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. He then missed the final two months of the year with a knee injury.
In what was some shocking news Friday morning, Bell has reportedly been suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season after violating the substance abuse policy once again.
During Bell’s absence last season, backup running back DeAngelo Williams did a more than adequate job picking up the slack.
In fact, he actually outperformed Bell in some key stats compiled by ESPN.
The Steelers averaged more points per game and more yards per play with Williams and without Bell last season. More: https://t.co/tN0LfZy631
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 22, 2016
Williams shed free from his mediocre final season with the Carolina Panthers and finished 2015 as the top-10 ranked running back. He recorded a total of 907 rushing yards while averaging 4.5 yards per rush and scoring 11 touchdowns.
The Steelers averaged an astounding 32 points per contest when only Williams was in the game. This is compared to the 17.3 points they averaged during the six games that Bell was the featured back.
Williams will be 33 when the season opens. However, if he remains in fine health, there is nothing to suggest the success he discovered with the Steelers will suddenly dissipate this season.
If anything, Williams has all of training camp to prepare for this role.
Meanwhile, we can probably assume that the Steelers’ brass wasn’t too happy to wake up to the news of Bell’s suspension. Being that Bell is entering the final year of his rookie contract, his current state of affairs does little to enhance his bargaining power.