Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell provided joy to many fantasy football players in 2014, and tonight he was recognized for it.
One of the very interesting roads the National Football League has traveled over the past several years is one that some old-timers could have never predicted.
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The game known as Fantasy Football was thought of as that silly activity for which only guys with pocket protectors and nerds who wear irregular underwear partake in.
To many, it would never be fully accepted into the mainstream.
Fast forward to the year 2015, and not only is it accepted, but the NFL has fully embraced it. As fantasy sports has capitalized on the ever improving qualities of the internet, the NFL has capitalized on this gambling industry as a whole.
Websites, analysts, experts, writers and now, even channels are present for all fantasy gamers to take part in. The league now even recognizes the NFL’s best fantasy player for each season.
For 2014, Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell takes home the NFL Fantasy Player of the Year award.
.@steelers RBs getting lots of honors tonight.@L_Bell26 has been named the Fantasy Player of the Year! pic.twitter.com/q4RZVCVVoo
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) February 1, 2015
When truly thinking about fantasy results and who the award should go to, it brings up tough questions depending on the scoring format. But you cannot argue with Le’Veon Bell.
Bell finished the season with 1,361 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 290 carries (4.7 YPC). While those are tremendous rushing stats, that alone wouldn’t have gotten him near this award.
It was his dual-threat talents out of the backfield that put him over DeMarco Murray and over the top to take home the honor.
Bell was targeted an incredible 105 times and caught 83 of them. He finished the season with 854 yards and three touchdowns through the air. In points per receptions (PPR) formats he finished as the number ranked running back in all the land.
In half point PPR’s or standard scoring, Murray topped Bell. Since Murray took home NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors, it’s only fitting that Bell took this one.
The closer competition to Bell was actually his own teammate in Antonio Brown. Again in full-point PPR formats, Brown actually beat out Bell in total points, 380.9 to 370.5, according to Fantasy Pros. Considering that Bell was being drafted a round or two after Brown, however, placed his value well ahead of Brown’s.
When discussing value at the running back position in fantasy football, nothing trumps it.
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