You can't teach this vision

[NorthCoast]

Bell noticed a tendency in Carolina's Luke Kuechly, the reigning NFL defensive player of the year, and cut back through a gaping hole the over-pursuing linebacker vacated.
"Kuechly, he's a good player," Bell said. "There were a couple of times early in the game I kind of saw he was really playing the double well. That's our play, the double. On the 81-yard run, I made him think I was running outside. He flew outside and the offensive linemen did a great job driving the three-technique off the ball and opening the seam up. That seam was probably the biggest seam of my career. I hit it and ran until I couldn't run anymore."

and it makes Bell one of the most dangerous offensive weapons the Steelers have had at RB since Bettis.

[SidSmythe]

Bell is unlike most runners ... He sets up and reads defense. The way the position is supposed to be played

[chiken]

He runs like a time bomb.

[RuthlessBurgher]

He runs like a time bomb.

Black coat, white shoes, black hat, Cadillac...

[Eich]

But what you can teach is how to make the O line work with and come to expect what the RB wants to do and will do. I think Munchak is making his presence felt in the run game.

[steelsnis]

Black coat, white shoes, black hat, Cadillac...

Now THIS is a good reference. ^^^^^^

"Yeah...the boy's a time bomb"

[hawaiiansteel]

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

Bell combines the missing elements of a combination of FWP and Mendenhall. Mendenhall had great patience - he would patiently wait and set up his blocks, and then never hit the hole. Parker would take off at full speed, and then hope that a hole opens up by the time he hits it.

Bell sets up his blocks and hits the hole as it opens. So far this year he is showing everything that we were hoping for.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Vision, patience, power, speed, catching ability, blocking ability...it's difficult to find any hole in the kid's game right now (other than driving while under the influence of marijuana)...but then again the league just reduced the testing thresholds and punishments for marijuana use by players.

[RShazier50]

He doesn't run with Bettis' power (many people forget how hard Bettis was to tackle when he was young) or leverage but he sees the defense and the field better than Bettis. He is just as nimble and he sets up defenders better than any Steeler back in decades.

Bell is also so much better at receiving it isn't worth comparing.

Honestly I think he is better than The Bus and that is saying something. The real question mark will be injury and avoiding some of the big hits.

[RuthlessBurgher]

He doesn't run with Bettis' power (many people forget how hard Bettis was to tackle when he was young) or leverage but he sees the defense and the field better than Bettis. He is just as nimble and he sets up defenders better than any Steeler back in decades.

Bell is also so much better at receiving it isn't worth comparing.

Honestly I think he is better than The Bus and that is saying something. The real question mark will be injury and avoiding some of the big hits.

Bettis had really good feet for a big guy. Bell has really good feet for a small guy (except that he ain't small). Of course Bettis had more power than Bell, but when we need a no-nonsense power runner now, we can always put in Blount.

[hausparty]

Love his patience and he doesn't do the FRANCO and run out of bounds either.

[ikestops85]

I don't think I've ever seen a back as patient as Bell. There are times I think he stops in the hole just waiting for something to happen and then he just explodes. An amazing running style ... especially for one so young.

[Captain Lemming]

Love his patience and he doesn't do the FRANCO and run out of bounds either.

Funny you mention Franco though.
Franco too was tall patient and very good at setting up blocks.

Though I think the Marcus Allen comparison is better.

[SteelerOfDeVille]

I don't think I've ever seen a back as patient as Bell. There are times I think he stops in the hole just waiting for something to happen and then he just explodes. An amazing running style ... especially for one so young.

I thought the Marcus Allen Reference the other day was solid. Very reminiscent of Marcus' patience and vision. Actually, similar to his overall game - except, Marcus was just SMOOOOTH... "buttah"