After watching that display against Baltimore, it became abundantly clear to me and I’m sure to Todd Haley and Mike Tomlin as well, that the offense must center around Le’Veon Bell. He’s a game changer due to his splash play ability, but he can control the clock far better than anyone else on the team. He doesn’t necessarily need to get 35 carries against Jacksonville this Sunday, Oct. 8 in order for the team to win the game, but the offense must start with him. In doing so, the big plays that Roethlisberger and his receivers have been craving all season long will begin to open up. The explosive abilities of Antonio Brown and Bryant and even rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster (who had a touchdown reception against Baltimore) can be capitalized upon because defenses will have to stay true to the run first. Everything is different when Bell is the priority.
There are so many ways to get the ball to Bell. Obviously he’ll receive handoffs the majority of the time, but he’s the best receiving back in the NFL. Thus, supplementing some of the runs with short passes will work just as well, if not, better. Additionally, as much as I’ve soured on the wildcat formation over the years, I actually wouldn’t mind seeing Bell run it every now and again to throw another wrinkle at opposing defenses (including letting him throw it once or twice).
The Steelers have playmakers all over the offensive side of the ball with Brown, Bryant and Roethlisberger, but the most impactful is Bell. It started in Baltimore and it must continue against Jacksonville and beyond; the offense must center around Number 26 and explode from there.
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