Gregory Leon Bell (born August 1, 1962) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

and

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

, from 1984 to 1990. Bell played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

and was drafted by the Bills in the first round of the

1984 NFL Draft The 1984 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 1–2, 1984, at the Omni Park Cent ...

. Before going to Notre Dame, he attended South High School in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

College Statistics

*1980: 5 carries for 66 yards and one touchdown. *1981: 92 carries for 512 yards and 6 touchdowns. 11 catches for 135 yards. 13 kick returns for 371 yards and 1 touchdown. *1982: 24 carries for 123 yards and 1 touchdown. 3 catches for 20 yards. 3 kick returns for 50 yards. 1 punt return for 12 yards. *1983: 37 carries for 169 yards and 4 touchdowns. 6 catches for 65 yards and 1 touchdown. 5 kick returns for 108 yards. 10 punt returns for 55 yards.

Professional career

He was a one-time

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

er after his

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

year in 1984 with the Bills after having a 1,100 rushing yards and a seven touchdown season. Bell had his best year after the

1988 NFL season The 1988 NFL season was the 69th regular season of the National Football League. The Cardinals relocated from St. Louis, Missouri to the Phoenix, Arizona area becoming the Phoenix Cardinals but remained in the NFC East division. The playoff ra ...

with the Rams, in which he had 1,212 rushing yards and led the league with sixteen touchdowns. He had a similar season the year after in which Bell had 1137 rushing yards and fifteen touchdowns, again leading the league. To that point, no other running back had ever led the league in rushing touchdowns in consecutive seasons without entering the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

, and Bell attempted to hold out for a better contract. The Rams instead traded him to the Raiders, who had a loaded backfield consisting of

Marcus Allen Marcus LeMarr Allen (born March 26, 1960) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the Los Angeles Raiders. Considered one of the greatest goal line and short-y ...

Bo Jackson Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson (born November 30, 1962) is an American former professional baseball and American football player. He is the only professional athlete in history to be named an All-Star in both baseball and football. Jackson's el ...

, and

Napoleon McCallum Napoleon Ardel McCallum (born October 6, 1963) is a former American college and professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. McCallum played college footbal ...

; Bell barely saw the field and was out of the NFL after that season.

NFL career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Greg 1962 births Living people Players of American football from Columbus, Ohio American football running backs Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players Buffalo Bills players Los Angeles Rams players Los Angeles Raiders players American Conference Pro Bowl players Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's track and field athletes