Bell making impact, even without sacks
PITTSBURGH – Watching Kendrell Bell these days could make one wonder if last year really happened. The newest member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, though, former Jacksonville center Jeff Smith, knows all too well that there really is a Kendrell Bell.
“Yeah, I remember that play,” said Smith, who joined the team Monday. “It was probably one of the lowlights of my season. He made a great play. He caught me just right then got to the quarterback and caused a fumble. He’s done that a lot in his short career.”
Bell became known last season for the ferocious way he attacked not only those with the ball, but those blocking for those with the ball.
Against Jacksonville last November, Bell blitzed up the middle and threw a forearm into Smith’s chest that caused the 320-pounder’s knees to buckle before he crumpled to the ground. It was as if Bell had punched out an elephant, and in the same motion he leaped onto quarterback Jonathan Quinn for a sack while stripping the ball for a fumble which the Steelers recovered.
It was the signature play of Bell’s Rookie-of-the-Year campaign. He finished the 18-game extended season with 102 tackles and 10 sacks.
This year, Bell has 32 tackles and 0 sacks in seven games. Is he going through a sophomore slump?
“No,” Steelers defensive coordinator Tim Lewis said emphatically. “Our games have been so screwed up. We’ve been ahead, so teams are trying to come from behind so the dime’s on the field and he’s not on the dime and nobody sees him. But he’s a difference maker. The only reason we’re getting into so many third-and-longs is because of him.
“If the other guys would do their job and get us off the field after third down, he’d – heck, he’d be on the field even less.”
Lewis believes Bell is over the high ankle sprain that caused him to miss four games this season. But last Sunday Bell limped off the field more than once and afterward complained that the playing surface at Heinz Field caused him to twist both ankles.
Bell refuses to acknowledge that he might be limited by an injury. It’s not just warrior pride keeping him quiet. Like several others on the team, Bell follows his coach’s preference for not giving out injury information. Bell doesn’t admit to frustration, either.
“No,” he said. “I mean, just sitting out was frustrating, but now that I have to be in the game I’m loving it.”
As Lewis pointed out, Bell isn’t always on the field, and it isn’t only on third down. While protecting leads, the Steelers kept their most explosive defender off the field the entire fourth quarter against both Cleveland and Atlanta.
“We’d like to get him on the field more,” Lewis said. “We tried to do that with the nickel, but the nickel package is so small. It doesn’t give us the flexibility we have with our dime.”
Nor does it give them their Rookie of the Year inside linebacker during the most important snaps of the game.
“I kind of got over it last year,” Bell said. “I figured I was never going to get in there last year so I kind of got over it.”
Yet, Bell did manage those 10 sacks last year. Why doesn’t he have any this year?
“Because of the spread,” Lewis said. “Again, because of the sacks, people are doing things differently offensively and that’s what they try to eliminate. They’re trying to make him go out and cover. They’re trying to make Joey (Porter) go out and cover. They’re trying to make Jason (Gildon) go out and cover. The sack numbers are still decent, but not great. But that’s what they do. They isolate and go, ‘OK, he can’t be coming because he’s got to cover, and he can’t be coming because he’s got to cover.’ That’s what teams are doing. When teams try to get into a two-back set like Cincinnati did the other day, how many yards rushing did they get? Not many, because, again, they can’t go anywhere. That’s because of Kendrell.”
The Bengals gained 54 yards rushing on 21 carries (2.6 average), and Bell’s presence has been significant statistically. In their first five games, the Steelers allowed 4.4 yards per carry. In their last six games, since Bell returned from his injury, the Steelers allowed 3.6 yards per carry.
“This year I am getting a lot more respect,” Bell added. “I’ve got guys doubling on me and things like that. I kind of anticipated it in a way. I’ve got guys trying to cut me, slow me down, getting me out of plays, but I look at things like that and figure it will make me a better football player.”
And he’s still trying to knock out the elephants. The guy teammates nicknamed “Contact” last year would seemingly rather run over linemen than around them.
“He’s just wreaking havoc,” said Smith, the new backup center. “When you do that, it makes you think about it when you see him coming. If he hits you or not, he kind of takes you out of your game plan a little bit. It’s an effective tool for him.”
“I start out trying to juke them to get them off balance,” Bell said. “But a lot of times guys will try to come and attack me, so I try to attack them first.”
Even if the ankle’s not fully healed, the attitude is. “Don’t worry about Kendrell,” Lewis said. “He’s fine.”