In the wee hours of Wednesday morning, the Jets agreed to terms with former Steelers RB Le’Veon Bell on a four-year deal worth $52.5 million with a maximum value of $61 million and $35 million in guaranteed money.
Bell was always the Jets’ top target this offseason. It was thought to be the perfect marriage with New York having the second-most cap space in the NFL and a need for talented skill players to surround Sam Darnold with.
However, New York’s ability to provide Bell with a payday and the opportunity to team up with Darnold were not the only factors that played into his decision. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, one of the biggest factors in Bell picking the Jets over a push from the San Francisco 49ers lied in his affinity for his childhood idol, Curtis Martin.
After Bill Parcells left New England for New York, he signed his former Patriots running back to an offer sheet. Like Bell, there were prolonging issues that held up contract negotiations. The Jets signed Martin to a six-year, $36 million offer sheet with a poison pill. The Patriots refused to match and wound up getting compensation after complaining to the league office. Once everything settled down and Martin took the field for the Jets, though, he became the greatest running back in franchise history and an eventual Hall of Famer.
Bell is trying to follow in Martin’s footsteps. He said in a 2016 interview on The R&B Podcast that Martin is one of the players he tries to emulate on the field.
“When I was young, Curtis Martin was my guy,” Bell said. “I remember, I didn’t really understand why he always put his hand on like the back of his lineman all the time, but when I was younger, I would try to do it all the time. I just didn’t know why he was doing it.”
With Bell now in the mix, the hope is that he can channel Martin’s glory days and become one of Gang Green’s greatest running backs. Whenever Bell needs a reminder of what he’s playing for, all he’ll have to do is look up into the rafters and catch a glimpse of his childhood idol’s number.
