The Pittsburgh Steelers have started to hit their stride over the last several weeks currently riding a three-game win streak heading into Week 9 action against the Baltimore Ravens.

Despite that, a lingering topic of discussion has been star running back Le'Veon Bell's status for this season now that the trade deadline has come and gone. With that in mind, Ravens defensive coordinator Wink Martindale has voiced that the Steelers' offense is much better without the 26-year-old, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN.

“There are a lot of stats [since 2015] that the Steelers are actually better without him,” Martindale said Thursday. “That might be why he's riding a jet ski down in Miami right now.”

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This is a bit of bold statement from Martindale as Bell has been a huge part of helping the Steelers become a powerhouse in the NFL over the last few seasons. However, his decision to remain away from the team this year has opened the door for second-year running back James Conner to step in to provide stable production out of the backfield.

Conner is currently sitting at 599 rushing yards and second with nine rushing touchdowns along with 31 receptions for 323 receiving yards. He is also coming off another huge performance where he posted 146 rushing yards and two touchdowns, which helped garner AFC Offensive player of the week honors. This marked the third straight game with at least 110 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, which has made him the first player in franchise history to reach that mark in three consecutive contests.

Although Conner has provided tremendous production out of the backfield this season, it is hard to state the team is markedly better without him as he has proven to be one of best running backs in the league when on the field. Only time will tell what Bell's future is with the Steelers and if the Pittsburgh product is the long-term answer for them out of the backfield.