Le'Veon Bell's Usage History Could Point to 2019 Fantasy Football Success

We have, of course, no 2018 stats to analyze for Le'Veon Bell after he held out for the entire season, opting to wait for free agency before ultimately signing with the New York Jets.

Don't let that year off erase your memories of what he was able to do when he was on the field, though. The Pittsburgh Steelers often asked him to shoulder a massive workload, and he more than rose to the occasion.

Obviously his role could change some playing in a new system and under a new coaching staff, but while the way he's used may be up in the air, it would be a real surprise if the Jets didn't continue to give him a ton of touches.

His contract is worth over $50 million, and the Jets gave him the second-most guaranteed money for any player at the position, trailing only Todd Gurley. You're not likely to invest that much in a player at a largely replaceable position unless you really want to feature them in your offense.

Four of the top five running backs in guaranteed money in 2018 saw both 250-plus carries and 75-plus targets on the year, while the other (Leonard Fournette) only played in eight games.

Bell could be dealing with some rust after going a full year without playing football, but he did more than just get fed the ball a lot in Pittsburgh. He was also incredibly effective with the ball in his hands.

He gets a downgrade in offensive line and overall quality of offense with the Jets, but his volume looks like it could be set to remain consistent, which could allow him to produce big numbers.

He's being drafted on average in the first round, as the sixth running back off the board, and if he gets the kind of volume that his contract suggests he might, then he would be positioned very well to pay off that draft cost.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.