Last night, former Pittsburgh Steelera running back Le'Veon Bell signed with the New York Jets for four years, $52.5 million, including $35 million guaranteed and the possibility to go up as high as $61 million with incentives.

Bell's contract certainly fell short of the All Pro's expectations, in large part because teams aren't looking to pay out much money to running backs, especially those that will be approaching 30 by the time their deal ends.

In addition to the New York Jets, the Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens were all rumored to be in on Bell.

However, Pro Football Talk claims that at least one of those teams, the Ravens, never even reached out to Bell's agent.

For the most part, teams seem to have decided to allocate fewer resources to their running backs. And even those who have paid up may regret it. Arizona's running back David Johnson had a down year after signing a three year $39 million extension, and Los Angeles' Todd Gurley spent the majority of the playoffs splitting carries with C.J. Andersen due to an apparent injury after signing for four years and $60 million.

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Bell sat out for the entirety of the 2018 season after the Steelers franchise tagged him for a second time. He had hoped to making up for the $14 million he lost out on by not playing on the tag last year.

In 2017, the last season he played, Bell rushed for 1,291 yards and nine touchdowns, he also caught 85 passes for 655 yards and two touchdowns.

Bell gives second-year quarterback Sam Darnold and new head coach Adam Gase a running back to run their offense through. His ability to impact the passing game makes him the perfect security blanket for a developing quarterback.

Baltimore also has a young quarterback, Lamar Jackson, but it appears the Ravens had no interest in adding Bell.

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