When Le’Veon Bell agreed to terms with the New York Jets on
a four-year deal Tuesday night, we wrote that he lost his big gamble. Now that the contract
details are out, there is no doubt about it — Bell got far less than he was
hoping for. I for one am glad that Bell got far less than he wanted. Bell
wanted out of Pittsburgh and I for one am glad that he’s out of Pittsburgh.
Le’Veon Bell’s 4
year $52.5M contract w/ the #Jets includes $25M
guaranteed, all thru 2020. It’s a 2 for $26M deal in terms of guarantee
structure, that includes a somewhat ironic $14.5M in 2019 (his tag price from
2018).
Remember, Bell wanted to get paid like a top receiver. He also turned
down a deal in Pittsburgh that would have given him $33 million in the first
two years before then turning down $14.4 million fully guaranteed by sitting
out last season rather than signing the franchise tag.
So, while $25 million guaranteed is a lot of money, it’s
nowhere near what he was hoping to land. Also, that figure ranks Bell No. 5 in
the NFL among his peers, with Todd Gurley, David Johnson, Saquon Barkley and
Leonard Fournette all getting more guaranteed cash.
This fact, combined with the reports that the Jets were
really the only serious suitor for Bell until the very end, show that the
league really did not like Bell’s decision to sit out the 2018 season.
Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report touched on that in his
weekly 10-Point Stance column, writing, “above all, teams hated
Bell’s decision to hold out, and because of it, they didn’t trust him.”
Bell wanted to shift the market. He wanted to be a catalyst
for change. Those are noble aspirations. Unfortunately, in the end all he got
was the fifth-most guaranteed money for his position in the NFL.
No comments:
Post a Comment