LeVeon Bell
How many times have questionable “personal foul” and “roughing the passer” penalty flags been thrown to “protect the quarterback at all costs” culture in professional football alive and well?
During the Steelers’ 20-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Oct. 29, there were two roughing-the-passer incidents that occurred. Two obvious fouls were committed, one by each team. One of the violations that was called was supposedly committed by Steelers safety Keanu Neal against Jags QB Trevor Lawrence. The violation that was not flagged and was totally ignored by the officials, almost as if it was invisible, was the tackle by Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Adam Gotsis on Steelers QB Kenny Pickett that knocked Pickett out of the game just before halftime. Sometimes, I often think; are players who ply their trade for certain teams or coaches more valuable than others?
There are also times that an offensive lineman, a running back, a tight end, or a wide receiver has been given a pass for committing a holding penalty, simply because that player committed the foul because they were protecting “their quarterback.”
Just a few weeks ago, the Pittsburgh Steelers were playing the Cleveland Browns at Acrisure Stadium. During a play in the “red zone,” Browns “all-world” running back Nick Chubb was injured when he received a nasty, but legal, hit below the waist that caused him to be carted off the field. That hit has resulted in Chubb being absent from the Browns lineup in the immediate and foreseeable future. Is there a lack of or even an equitable valuation system in place for the well-being of the remainder of the skill position players of color that compete in the NFL and professional football world?
When a quarterback throws an errant pass, the wide receiver is expected to stretch out or go up and snag the ball to complete the play. Oftentimes, when a wide receiver chooses not to jeopardize his career or possibly his life by going up or laying out to complete a catch, many of the talking heads have accused the player of cowardice that is defined by that player hearing “imaginary footsteps” anticipating a missile-like hit that was incoming.
However, when a QB bails out of the pocket when the opposing defense blankets the wide receivers, this “pocket abandonment” is lauded as, “extending the play.”
LE’VEON BELL made an eye-popping catch in the end zone for a touchdown that kept the Steelers in the game. But in the end, Jacksonville walked away with the three-point playoff victory, Jan. 14, 2018 at Heinz Field. (Photo by Courier photographer Thomas Sabol/File)
The current value of running backs in the NFL is topped by a player who is not a player of color. San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey is the highest-paid running back in the NFL. He currently makes $16 million a season. That is an exorbitant amount, by any standard. The superficial reason for McCaffrey’s inflated value (according to the talking heads) is that McCaffrey is also an excellent blocker as well as a great receiver out of the backfield. Remember ex-Pittsburgh Steelers running back LeVeon Bell? According to espn.com, “Bell finished his rookie season (2013) with 244 carries, 860 rushing yards, and eight rushing touchdowns to go along with 45 receptions for 399 yards. He started the last 13 games of the season.”
That was his rookie season! Bell could run, block, pass protect with the best of them. After his contract renewal efforts with the Steelers were unsuccessful, Bell sat out the entire 2018 season.
According to sportingnews.com: “In 2019, he signed a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the New York Jets with $35 million guaranteed. That was after declining the franchise tag with the Steelers, with one deal worth $14.5 million.”
There was a consensus among the media that LeVeon Bell was a great player, but his contract demands were simply too high because his performance expiration date was near, simply because of the years that he had played and the short life expectancy of running backs. If offensive coordinators included more passes to running backs, the backs would catch more balls, it is as simple as that.
There seems to be a conscious effort to lower the value of athletes of color in the NFL, regardless of the position that they play. There is also a simultaneous and constant effort to increase the value of White athletes who are praised and glorified in whatever position they play, whenever and wherever the opportunity presents itself.
Since there are not many blazing and warp-speed White athletes competing in the NFL on the offensive side of the ball, the position of tight end has become the new NFL go-to position. This is a position that is ideally suited for athletes who may be “intellectually compatible” with the “complex offensive” systems of the new NFL generation of “young head coaching geniuses” being groomed by most of the power ownership group within. All this valuable chatter represents just another barrier that many athletes of color must overcome.
There is a new economic foul. It is called, “roughing the bank account.” There is no one around with the power to make that call. The agents and NFL owners wear the “tiger stripes,” always officiating from their Wall Street boardrooms ensuring that many athletes of color will continue to experience generational, “economic insecurity.”
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