Le'Veon Bell probably won't have to run the ball as much in the NFL as he did for Michigan State, but he'll be a factor on the Pittsburgh Steelers, who took him in the second round. Bell's the No. 12 running back in the draft and the No. 141 player overall per Dan Kadar of Mocking the Draft.
NFL Draft results 2013: Le’Veon Bell selected by Steelers with No. 48 pick
Le’Veon Bell got the ball over and over and over and over again for Michigan State in 2012, making up most of the Spartans’ offense. Now, the big running back moves to the pros, as the Steelers drafted him in the second round.
Leon Halip
Remembering Le'Veon Bell
Le'Veon Bell wasn't the first in the line of workhorse running backs at Michigan State, but he is probably the best to date. Bell carried the MSU offense almost by himself in 2012, and led the nation with over 29 rushing attempts per game. No single game encapsulated what he meant to the Spartans like their season opening 17-13 win over Boise State, in which he carried the ball an astronomical 44 times for 210 yards and two touchdowns. - Peter Berkes
Bell wasn't a feature back as a freshman or sophomore, pumping out high efficiency yardage as a backup or splitting carries with Edwin Baker -- 605 yards on 5.7 yards per carry and eight touchdowns as a freshman, 948 yards on 5.2 and 13 touchdowns as a sophomore. But after Bell's sophomore season, Baker graduated and so did Michigan State's star, quarterback Kirk Cousins.
That left Bell as, well, the bell cow for Michigan State, the only real offensive option. He’d run the ball 382 times -- that’s 29.4 carries per game! -- in 2012, with three 200-yard games. He’d finish the year with 1,793 yards, fourth in the nation. Rather than come back for another 400 carries, Bell decided to go pro and get paid for his pain.
Bell’s a truck: 6’2, 230 pounds, with decent straight-line speed. He’s not the most nimble runner, but he does have some ability to make guys miss. That said, he’s going to thrive in the NFL thanks to his ability to bruise and break hits with his sheer size. He’ll be able to go up the gut and dish out as many hits as he takes, and his college resume shows he can handle a full-time workload and then some. He might project more as a short-yardage/goal-line back than an every-down guy, but he can handle the workload if a team decides to give it to him.
After losing Rashard Mendenhall to free agency, the Steelers needed to add a running back in the draft and found their man in Bell. He will likely split time with Isaac Redman and Jonathan Dwyer in the Pittsburgh backfield and is a classic Pittsburgh-style running back as a big bruiser.
Combine numbers
Height: 6’2
Weight: 230 pounds
Hand size: 9 5/8 inches
40 time: 4.60 seconds
Bench press: 24 reps
Vertical leap: 31.5 inches
Broad jump: 118 inches
3-cone drill: 6.75 seconds
20-yard shuttle: 4.24 seconds
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