For Whom The Tall Bell Tolls – A Look At Steelers RB Le\’Veon Bell And His BMI

One of the knocks on Pittsburgh Steelers rookie running back Le\’Veon Bell is his height, as he measured in at the 2013 NFL Combine at 73.375 inches. Bell was asked about his height during the mandatory mini camp in an interview on 105.9 The X Radio and talked about the pros and cons of it.

“Being a 6\’2″ running back, I\’m going to be one of the taller guys,” said Bell. “That\’s why they teach me to run a little lower here on the next level, because guys can really try to get under me, but I use that for my advantage seeing the defense. It can be an advantage and a disadvantage at the same time, and I\’m just going to try to do the best I can with it.”

Perhaps the bigger factor to consider with Bell is his BMI, which stands for Body Mass Index. Chase Stuart did a study of successful running backs prior to the 2008 NFL Draft on Pro Football Reference and came up with an average BMI of 29.5 when looking at the top 50 running backs with the most rushing yards that entered the league in 1970 or later. The average height of those 50 running backs was 72 inches, and the average weight was 216 pounds.

In case you are curious, Bell had a BMI of 30.03 when measured at the combine back in February, so that puts him just slightly over the average that Stuart came up with in his study.

Quite a few draftniks compared Bell to Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte leading up to the 2013 NFL Draft, and while it is a fair comparison, Forte\’s BMI prior to when he was drafted in 2008 was 28.33. There have been durability concerns about Forte over the past few years; however, so you have to wonder if this is because of his height or his lack of BMI.

Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden has also had some good production since being drafted in 2008, but like Forte, he too has some durability concerns attached to him and Stuart wondered prior to the him being drafted if his low BMI was a red flag of sorts.

Of the 50 great running backs that Stuart used in his study, 18 of them measured in at 73 or more inches; however, only 7 of them had a BMI of 29.5 or more. Both Fred Taylor and Gerald Riggs had similar BMI measurements to that of Bell, so perhaps that is a good sign.

Speed score is another metric that has come along since Stuart did his study back in 2008, and while not off the charts, Bell\’s score of 102.7 is respectable as it is over the magic number of 100.

When you look at the top 25 rushers of the running backs drafted dating back to 2005 you will see that the average speed score is 109.9, and the average BMI is 30.1. The average height of those 25 running backs is 71.035, however.

Bell is indeed a uniquely put together back and several in the media say that he doesn\’t look like he weighs as much as he does. If the Michigan State product can keep his BMI in the 30-31 range, perhaps his height will indeed play to into his advantage as it relates to seeing the defense better just as he suggested. It\’s obvious that he must keep his pad level low as well in order to not to allow defenders to get under him.

One of the many things that impressed the Steelers about Bell heading into the draft was his ability in college to get yards after contact. In addition to that, Bell is also used to running both the outside and inside zone. On top of everything else, he was considered to be one of the better pass blockers and pass catchers in the 2013 draft class, so he very well could wind up being one of the most complete three down running backs that the team has had since Jerome Bettis.

Time will only tell whether or not tall Bell will toll in Pittsburgh, but I like his chances even though he is taller than the average running back and that is mostly because of his solid BMI and his ability to be more than just a straight ahead inside power runner.

Being as several of you might want to play with the numbers, below are the 171 running backs drafted since 2005. These are sortable by clicking on the headers, so let me know of any other observations that you come across in the comments below.