Shortly after the news broke earlier this week that the New York Jets had released running back Le'Veon Bell, Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones semi-subtly but less-than-cryptically engaged the prospect of Bell joining the Chiefs by simply invoking his name on Twitter.
Even if that wasn't exactly the impetus for what percolated over the next few days, it certainly was an instant spark in what promptly became an informal awareness campaign with, really, a hint of a frenzy among Chiefs fans and even some players.
No wonder there was some unabashed (and nearly unanimous) celebration when the Chiefs signed the two-time All-Pro on Thursday, including a tweet from defensive lineman Khalen Saunders crediting general manager Brett Veach for another apparent stroke of genius:
"Lol bro Veach is so cold," he wrote in a retweet of the team's announcement welcoming Bell.
For sure: In a 2020 already marked by the first Super Bowl triumph in 50 years and the signings of Mahomes to a 10-year contract extension worth nearly $500 million while also improbably managing to concoct a way to sign Jones to a four-year $85 million deal, this is fresh testimony to the resourcefulness of Veach and his staff and the willingness of owner Clark Hunt to keep reinvesting in the product.
Moreover, considering such helpful 2019 in-season acquisitions as Mike Pennel, Terrell Suggs and Stefen Wisniewski, it might be surmised that Veach has a knack for how to bolster the team midstream.
But it's also true there's an element of mystery to this maneuver. Because Bell is a man with something to prove years removed from his prime years with the Steelers, who balked at signing him long term, and after a season-plus of diminished performances for the Jets.
That burden of proof is a living, breathing variable in this, one with the considerable upside of substantial motivational force in a versatile player who averaged more yards from scrimmage per game in his first five seasons (129.0) than any player in NFL history who played a minimum of 50 games.
The downside, of course, is that the last time the 28-year-old Bell rushed for as many as 4 yards a carry was 2017, before he sat out the 2018 season in a contract dispute after declining to accept a franchise tag that would have paid him $14.5 million.
Since signing a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the Jets, Bell has averaged 3.3 yards a carry in 17 games and missed three games this season with a hamstring injury.
The Jets are off to an 0-5 start and went 7-9 last season, and it's well worth noting that Pro Football Focus ranked their offensive line 28th in the NFL last season.
Just the same, it's sure been a while since his last 100-yard-plus game (Dec. 17, 2017) and even longer since he was kryptonite against the Chiefs and amassing 493 yards on 80 carries in their last three meetings. It's reasonable to wonder how much tread he has left on the tires after 1,493 NFL carries and 381 receptions.
But assuming this is more about his spirit than anything else, this much you can expect:
"The chip on his shoulder is very real," Donis Toler Jr., his former school principal who would become a father figure to Bell, said in a phone interview on Friday.
It's real ... and it's always driven him, which is why Toler figures he'll run "very angry" for the Chiefs.
That's part of why he excelled at Michigan State, Toler said, noting that Bell was inspired by the fact that coming out of high school in Ohio "nobody wanted him except for a few schools. He had something to prove to Ohio State and the rest of the Big Ten."
The combination of his ego and having a lot to prove, Toler reckons, will make for the right mindset in a young man who also is inspired by the strength and wisdom of his mother, Lisa. He figures Bell will come in both hungry and "a little humble" after the last two years and what he called the contractual "debacle" with Pittsburgh.
In the case of the Jets, Toler cited Bell's conflict with head coach Adam Gase and the way he was being deployed as a crucial part of what went awry. When the coach doesn't believe in you, he said, that goes a long way towards determining what unfolds.
"Some of it is on Le'Veon for airing his concerns via social media," said Toler, now the principal of Independence High School in Columbus, Ohio. "But at the same time, you can't control the amount of touches that you get (and how you're utilized)."
Conversely, Toler believes Bell is in an infinitely better situation immediately with the Chiefs and coach Andy Reid, who has a well-deserved reputation for being able to work with players and cultivating a culture of accountability to the team.
"It will definitely be a different Le'Veon than what you saw in New York," Toler said. "I'll be shocked if it's not. Plus with Coach Reid and that cast and crew, he'll have no choice but to conform."
Along those lines, while he hasn't talked to Bell since the signing, he also said he'd be shocked if there weren't preliminary discussions about the role Bell would be expected to play. Knowing your role coming in, at least knowing your tentative role, is vital.
And Toler would be surprised if Bell wasn't intended to simply supplement, rather than supplant, rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
But getting to play for a Super Bowl contender, if not favorite, represents an entirely different context for Bell _ who is on a one-year contract that should further incentivize him to make the most of this:
After the last few years, his NFL future, be it here or elsewhere, will hinge on how this season works out.
"It will absolutely," Toler said, later adding, "A star-studded team on offense, and you've got the genius running the show? Good situation.
"Now, how it turns out? I look forward to seeing that."
So do we on the intriguing move ... but one that comes with a few X-factors to keep us in suspense about just what difference it can make.
