You can add the GOAT to the list of people who would love to see Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell land in San Francisco. The 49ers lost their starting running back for the season when Jerick McKinnon went down with an ACL tear over the weekend.
Jerry Rice joined 95.7 The Game on Thursday morning and was asked about the possibility of the 49ers going after Bell. It is important to note that there have been no reports of San Francisco pursuing a trade for the running back.
"He would bring a whole different dimension because now you've got a guy back there that can carry that rock and that can go the distance," Rice said on the "Joe, Lo and Dibs" show. "So, it takes some of the pressure off Jimmy G. With the backs and what they have going on right now with [Matt] Breida and Alfred Morris, I think [Matt] Breida, he's number one right now, and Alfred Morris is going to help try to carry that load."
"But, if you had a running back like that guy in the backfield, it opens up everything. Now teams can't go into that Cover 2 and all that. They've got to come up, they've got to play legit, and they've got to try to stop the running game, and that opens up the passing game."
"I don't know if it's going to happen, but that would be a great opportunity."
Click here to listen to the entire conversation with Rice.
The question remains if a trade for Bell is even realistic for interested teams, who would likely have to give up a lot for him.
Bell continues to hold out as he seeks a new contract with the Steelers. For the second-straight year, Pittsburgh used the franchise tag on the disgruntled running back, which would have guaranteed him $14.5 million. Bell never signed the tender so he will lose an $853,000 check for each game he misses during the regular season.
For a trade to move forward, Bell would need to sign his franchise tender. The team that hypothetically trades for him would be unable to sign him to a long-term deal due to the rules surrounding the franchise tag. That creates a situation where an NFL team would be trading for a player who they aren't even sure they could keep long-term.
