On Tuesday night, the news was broken that the Jets were releasing running back Le’Veon Bell after signing him in 2019. His 17 games with the team weren’t nearly as productive as they were expecting from the two-time All-Pro as he totaled 863 rushing yards, 500 receiving yards, and four touchdowns with the team. According to the NY Daily News, the Jets will take a huge $15 million dead cap hit in 2020 and another $4 million in 2021.

With that being said, other teams may believe that Bell was not put in a good situation to succeed on the inept Jets.

He hasn’t yet reached 30 (28 years old), and he was such a threat both running and catching the ball with the Steelers.

Here are three teams that I believe may end up being a landing spot for the three-time Pro Bowl running back. It wouldn’t make much sense for a team that isn’t very good to pick him up, so all three teams are in the playoff mix.

Arizona Cardinals

Kenyan Drake hasn’t duplicated the success that he showed after he was acquired from the Dolphins midway through last season. In eight games with the Cardinals last year, he averaged 5.2 yards per carry, scored eight times, and was targeted nearly 4.5 times per contest in the passing game.

It has been a different story in his second year with the team as his yards per carry has dipped to 3.7, he has scored just twice, and been targeted only six times through five outings.

Due to Kyler Murray’s exploits in the run game, they have averaged 141 rushing yards per game, but if Drake continues to struggle, they could use a new lead back (although Chase Edmonds has run well in his 19 attempts).

Chicago Bears

The Bears lost third-down back Tarik Cohen for the season and could use someone like Bell to fill his role.

Cohen caught a total of 150 passes in 2018 and 2019 so he was an extremely valuable member of the Chicago offense.

At 4-1 despite inconsistent play from quarterbacks Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles, a running game could be vital for their playoff chances. Second-year back David Montgomery is coming off two straight unproductive games running the ball totaling just 56 yards.

He’s averaging 3.9 yards per carry in 2020 after a 3.7-yard average in 2019.

New England Patriots

Couldn’t you see Bill Belichick taking a chance on Bell? Third-year back Sony Michel is currently on the IR with a quad injury, and there isn’t really a timeline as to when he will be back. Second-year back Damien Harris has just appeared in three games in his career as he hasn’t stayed healthy enough to play.

Running back isn’t a glaring need for New England as they also have James White and Rex Burkhead. If Cam Newton is ready for Week 6 (according to ESPN, he is set to return to practice on Thursday), he also provides excellent running ability from the quarterback position. This one is just more of a hunch that Belichick will want to see if he could tap into Bell’s potential which we saw throughout his tenure with the Steelers.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED