“I see him being special for a longtime,” were the words spoken by HOF running back Jerome Bettis in regards to Pittsburgh Steelers Le’Veon Bell.

Bettis was attending the Thursday night showdown between the Steelers and their rival Baltimore Ravens as he was receiving his Pro Football Hall of Fame Ring during a halftime ceremony. He touched briefly on how he views the Steelers current Pro Bowl running back.

Bell will be counted on more than ever with franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger likely to miss at least a month of football due to a sprained MCL and bone bruise on his knee. The offense will rely on a heavy dose of Bell in the coming weeks if they want to stay in contention in the ultra competitive AFC North.

“I see an incredible talent as far a player but more importantly I see a guy who’s not resting on his morals,” said Bettis. “That’s important to see after the year Le’Veon has last year. No one would be upset if he came in good condition or maybe two pounds heavier than last year. Instead he comes back in better shape than last year. That’s a testament to the type of person he is. He’s willing and working to be better.”

The incredible performance Bettis is referring to really is in the elite of elite level. Last season Bell set career highs in rushing yards (1,361), receptions (83), receiving yards (854), receiving touchdowns (three) and tied a career-high with eight rushing touchdowns.

Bell placed himself in some Hall of Fame company with his Steelers’ MVP performance.

He joined Marshall Faulk (1999) as the only players in the NFL history to rush for 1,350 yards and record 850 receiving yards in a single-season. In addition to that, Bell also became the third player in NFL history (Barry Sanders, 1994 and Faulk, 2000) to eclipse 2,000 scrimmage yards in a season without fumbling.

Bell has already set a franchise record for the most yards from scrimmage by a Steeler in their first two seasons with 3,474 yards.

“How much better can you be than last year?, Bettis asked.”

That’s a great question to ponder considering the immense talent Bell possesses.

“He’s already a special player,” Bettis said. “If he can take it to another level then the league is in trouble. I see him being special for a long time.”

Bell is arguably the best all around running back in the NFL.

Via the running or passing game, Bell makes impact plays on top of each other. Powerful enough between the tackles and elusive enough in open space to go the distance.

With back-up quarterback Michael Vick entrenched as the starter in the absence of Roethlisberger, the running game surely will be called on to pick up the slack in Pittsburgh.

Who better than Bell to pick up the slack?