Hopefully Bell will do a lot of this in midnight green.


It has taken an entire week (or so), but Mike Bell is officially an Eagle heading into the 2010 season. He immediately takes a backseat to starter LeSean McCoy and will allow Leonard Weaver to focus more on being a fullback than a backup running back.

Weaver will still see his carries, but they'll be cut in half -- or more -- with the arrival of Bell. He's a good, young veteran who has had success in this league with the Broncos and the Saints. He's got a Super Bowl ring and will bring a Super Bowl-winning attitude to a team used to winning over the past decade.

He's a great downhill change-of-pace to McCoy who is more of a shifty running back. Bell is a guy who can punish a defense just enough to make McCoy that much more effective, and in turn make the offense that much more effective.

The Eagles thought they were going to have a good 1-2 punch last season with McCoy and Brian Westbrook, but with Westbrook missing even more games than usual, Weaver was forced into a backup running back role, once again leaving the Eagles without a true fullback.

Bell has been a reliable option in Denver and New Orleans, and should be able to make a significant impact in Philadelphia right away. He will probably see 8-10 carries per game and will be the guy in the redzone.

Put Weaver in front of Bell in the 'I' and you've got a legitimate power-running attack that the Eagles haven't had since Dorsey Levens made a short run with the Birds in 2004.

Unless, of course, you count Tony Hunt.

Either way, Bell is an Eagle for at least 2010. He's only on a one-year deal so he might not be back for 2011, but if he produces 500-600 yards on the ground and a handful of touchdowns it would be hard for Andy Reid to let him walk.