Though it had been reported by various sources earlier in the day, the Broncos have now officially signed Tatum Bell, Head Coach Mike Shanahan announced.
To make room for Bell on the roster, the team has waived Glenn Martinez.
Bell is in his fifth-year in the NFL and his second stint with Denver. He initially entered the league as a second round selection of the Broncos in the 2004 NFL Draft. He spent his first three seasons with the Broncos before he was traded to Detroit on March 2, 2007, and played for the Lions last year before he was released by the club on Sept. 2.
In 47 career games, he has rushed 525 times for 2,524 yards with 14 touchdowns while catching 61 passes for 362 yards. His 4.9-yard rushing average during three seasons in Denver also represents the second-best career mark in club history among players with at least 250 carries.
During his final year with the Broncos in 2006, Bell started all 13 games played and registered the first 1,000-yard rushing season of his career with 1,025 yards on 233 carries with two scores. He started all five games played with the Lions last year, rushing 44 times for 182 yards with one touchdown and catching 14 passes for 63 yards.
In the wake of a string of injuries that resulted in three running backs being placed on IR, Bell could get onto the field Sunday in Atlanta, and he will wear No. 40.
– Adam Zinser, DenverBroncos.com
Tags: Adam Zinser, Glenn Martinez, Tatum Bell, Transactions
I think that this was a smart move, and although I may be repeating others with the same ideas, it is important to hear. First, Tatum was not terrible with us, as a matter of fact you could say he was good. Second, he knows the system and can step in almost immediately, as long as he is in shape. Lastly, we did not have many other options and even though Hillis has done a great job stepping in, he is not a true running back and it is not like with this signing he is going to disappear. He will still be used and it may make him more dangerous because he won’t be the focus, which is why he did so good against Miami a few weeks ago. You can’t complain about this move and if he is no good we can just let him go as we have done in the past. Also, don’t complain about Glenn leaving because he was no all-star and if we need him again we can just sign him again. It is not like every other team in the league is pursuing him. No worries
I keep readying good move bad move about Bell look its simple nobody expected us to lose all our backs this year. I think personaly this is a good move we,needed someone right now they could just plug into the system. Yes he had some fumble problems so that means he will fill in nicely with this team this year. Just kidding but he did have some good runs with us. and I do agree with Sporthess I think with this second chance he will be little better. Hey fans we are now a passing team. So alot of that rushing pressure is gone. so we don’t need a 1,000 yard back we just need someone to keep the D honest and on there toes a little bit. so Cutler and those WR’s can go to work. GO Broncos.
Some not all of you guys are ridiculous. You sit in your lazyboy every Sunday and watch football on your 18” TV and think you know it all. Trust me there are several factors that have led to this point. Bell is a great pick up. He knows the system, he is fast and hopefully he is in shape. Watch him have a 100+ game on Sunday and the blog will be littered with people jerking this move off….
Tatum was brought in to be our 3rd down back/change of pace guy. I imagine the other two are insurance and our “goal line bruisers”. Wish I could recall if he was a good pass blocker. Perhaps we use Hillis in pass blocking situations? Either way, we get Hillis back to fullback where he had a 100yd receiving game and feels comfortable. I think this pickup will be good until the new guys can learn the system/Selvin gets healthy.
It’s nice to see Tatum Bell back. I think with proper coaching he can become a very good back. He just fits the Denver scheme so well and hes is electric in orange and blue
Justin Miller also played cornerback, which would also be very helpful in the case of injuries.
Hey guys here look it up: ( http://www.kffl.com/team/15/nfl ) they brought in a whole bunch of guys so he must be in shape and QUIT being so dang negative be glad we have what we do. It could be worse look at the chefs the idiot that is carl peterson (one of our best assets) is going to end up keeping his job because they stumbled on thigpen and they may finish 1-15. We are leading the division with enough players to fill a mash unit. 5-4 and looking up there is no reason we shouldn’t be fighting for the best in the AFC next year so be a REAL FAN and support your team or get off the wagon cuz your just another scab fan……
hope that link works their site is down at the moment
I love this move, just look at the clips of him, he gives a look that we haven’t had in a while. He can do what Aldrige will give them next year a homerun threat. The man is hungry and humble.. I am rooting for this kid. I remember the bad stuff, the fumbles but i also remember how affected he was by D wills death. I really hope he does well with his second chance.
I am happy they kept Chad Jackson, he has long term potential. I could see our three wide out packages with Jackson and Marshall wide with royal in the slot. How good is Eddie Royal…
ok the signing of tatum was ok i guess.
but check this.
ok we can sign almost any back and have him do just enough pounding the rock.
however.
our defense blows im not going to lie.
and we need a reliable starter across Bly since Champ is out.
and even when he gets back we need a nickel corner.
Jets released Justin Miller.
the guy kills with his speed.
hes good on special teams.
we need corners.
I THINK GETTING T-BELL IS GOOD!!! BECAUSE HE CAN MAKE THE BIG PLAY SO YOU ARE GOING TO GET 8 IN THE BOX TO MAKE SURE THAT DOES NOT HAPPEN. THAT WILL REALY HELP CUTLER IN THE PASSING ATTACK. TATUM HOLD ON TO THE BALL YOU WEINER!!!!
Let me refresh your memory 2 years ago we needed 1 win to make the
playoffs against San Francisco had it all we need was a first down and
bell TATUM NOT MIKE FUMBLED THE BALL SO GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT
BAILEY’S BEST FAN AND AS FAR AS SAYING WE GOT BLY FOR FREE BECAUSE WE GOT BELL BACK BLY HAS BEEN A BUST SINCE HE GOT HERE. ALSO JUST BECAUSE SOME OF US DON’T LIKE SOME MOVES MADE
BY THE TEAM DOES NOT MEAN I’M NOT A TRUE FAN
ORANGE AND BLUE FOREVER
Tatum Bell ummm OK ? i guess I mean he is not a bruising runner he is a side line to side line runner. With all the other RB/FB we have he should be the starter this weekend against Atlanta he knows the system, and he is a good runner.
Still Rather Have RON DAYNE
The way our backs are dropping like flies this season, we should already be looking for a backup for Bell. Anyone know what Sammy Winder is up to?
Hey blum i have a real problem with you telling someone to get their facts straight and then you go out and say that Bly has been a complete bust.
Maybe you dont understand that when Champ Bailey is only thrown to 13 times halfway through the season that his opposite starting corner is going to have tremendous pressure every game. Bly does the best he can. And as you saw against the Browns he stepped up big and forced that momentum changing fumble.
So if anyone needs to get their facts straight, its you my friend!
Welcome back Tatum, you’ll fit well into our offensive scheme as you’ve had success with you previously. If you’re not a thief, all should be well. Don’t rip anyone else’s luggage.
If you hating on Tatum you must have lost your damn mind. He was our last real successful rusher and he wasnt dropped he was traded to make our defense better. This was the news I was waiting for when all our RBs went on IR….His speed and lack of 1 cut isn’t the typical bronco style but he made it work few years back and our O-Line aint the best run blockers so we need a speedy guy that runs different from the way we normally do.
I am excited…Im picking him up in my fantasy and when he hits the field he will prove all you nay saysers wrong….for goodness sakes you think alex haynes was better????? That man has done nothing in his career and isnt familiar with our system. Tatum is the opposite. I was sad to see him go and he did some questionable things where he went but it is wha tit is. Glad to have him back and GO BRONCOS!!!
All I remember about Bell was that he was good enough for us to trade him, along with a tackle (George Foster I think), for Dre Bly, a trade that at this point I’m not too fond of, but Bly had a lot of value at that time, and Bell did too. He had a 1000 yard season and almost a second one when he wasn’t even the starter (remember the whole “Mike Anderson/Tatum Bell 1-2 punch” running attack?) I’m still shocked the LIONS let him go… the Lions could use any help they can get. Oh, and what’s all this people are asking about why couldn’t they get someone else… the trade deadline is over so that leaves Free Agents as our only pool for running backs at this time, and getting a back we’ve had before and who knows our system is so much better than getting a fresh face, at this point in the season and in our desperation…
I love the pick up! LOVE IT!
I mean remember when he was drafted, it was said he would make us forget about CP, and wearing his old number 26 made us do that just the same. He is faster than Portis is, and a little bigger, amazing! We did not drop him, we flat out traded him, and yes Foster with some draft picks exchanged for Dre Bly. Who was a fantastic pick up, I MEAN GET OFF BLY’S BACK! Look at how Paymah gets torn up being opposite of BLY and he doesn’t even get half as much attention as Bly does when he lines up opposite of Champ! So cool it there with the bashing!
I belive Bell only took the bag because he was a little upset of being let go because they picked up Johnson, he was a sure starter once again finally after they let go Kevin Jones, and then bam, cut!
Also as the for mentioned guy near the top said, HE ONLY HAD 5 FUMBLES WITH US! That is over 3 years guys! Pretty freaking sure handed to me! IT was MIKE BELL that was diagnosed with the disease fumblias and was exhiled from Denver for it!
Also BLUM! get some more facts straight sir, 2 years ago we did not even have Bell on the team, 2 years ago it was Mike Bell that was on the team, he was the one with the fumble you remember! Tatum’s last year here was the same year as Andersen, Andersen left for Baltimore as a FA, and we traded Tatum Bell to Detroit for Bly!
We have Hillis who can pound it up the middle, we have Larsen to clear the way for Hillis in power formations. We picked up Pope, who I see as just a depth really, we picked up the other guy who was a stud in college but hasn’t had a real shot in the pros yet, who again is a bruiser. WE NEEDED A STRETCH GUY! Some of you said you hated that Bell always kept running to the sideline to try and get the big play, that is what we need for the zone scheme to work. TD was effective because he was willing to run the stretch play to get the defense to over commit and open up the cut back for the big run! Bell will do just that, I see him and Pope dressing for the game, because both are familiar at this point and they will alternate, then next week assuming no injuries, Pope will sit out so we have a 1, 2 punch without using up Hillis!
Keep the faith fans. Maintain the gaps defense, can’t give burner turner a stellar game! Make Ryan have an uphill battle that he will lose with a real gunslinger!
i dont even believe that so many of you would fall for stupid tricks like the post above about the underwear** it was said a pair of “poo poo” pants were taken. I mean wtf, what kind of writer writes about that. ALSO look at the site its self..I mean it looks like it can be alterd. I dont doubt the baggage being stolen, but his story could be true, and why wasnt the guy he grabbed the bag for looked into? hmm seems a little weird dont ya think? i agree. T. bell did fumble, just like mike bell did, but Andre did also.. So did marshall, but we dont bash on marshall do we. I think this is a great move for the remainder only if he can hold onto the rock. if he cant then..crap. But he does know our system and he is big. So hopefully hell shine..I really feel horrible bout the ATV>.I was so hyped to see him play .. /wrist.
GO broncos!
T.Bell,Great move.He is the best availaible and will be great. I am More concerned with getting Marshall straightened out.He needs to quit thinking about himself and playing Team football.The guy is just not too smart.Go Broncos,Kill the Birds
With the Broncos ability to plug in RB’s and have success, I think it made it easy for them to trade Bell and Foster for Bly. Bly is a quality DB and it really has shown with Champ being out because no one is throwing his way. Paymah is now the target of the opposing QB’s attention. I think T. Bell was in Shanny’s dog house with the fumbling and not being able to carry the entire load by himself, hence the trade. After being in football purgatory (Detroit) hopefully T. Bell will appreciate being back in Denver and do a good job for us, especially in the 4th quarter when we really need him. Go Broncos!
For those of you who like Ron Dayne and Glenn Martinez, you must have a very low expectation for talent. I’m not a big Tatum Bell fan but he more experience in our system than of the other backs on our squad. I understand the move and I’m all for it.
..kinda funny how now its like we got bly for foster…ha…i was bummed to see bell go in the first place…lets go broncs!
I think it is a good move, Tatum only rushed for a thousand yards and then gets traded. Clinton Portis, well I don’t need to tell you what a stupid move that was.He is doing rather well. I don’t ubderstand the front office’s attitude about running backs. They work well in the system here and yet they are passed on to other teams. I bet the redskins love the trade they made for Portis.Give Taum a chance, I am willing to bet this could be a great move.
I don’t mind getting Tatum again. He did an OK job before. I would have prefered Mike Bell because he had a lot of heart. We keep having injuries, so I don’t see how signing Tatum will help. I remember the one thing Shanny used to not like about him was his durability. Why sign a guy if you think he can’t stay healthy?
I like Martinez. I realize we have a roster limit, but did we have to cut him. He played hard and did a good job. He has made a few big catches this year and helped on special teams. Couldn’t we demote someone else?
Music Maker: I agree with everything you said, except I don’t think trading Portis away was a mistake. We received Champ in that trade, and he has been great. I would hate to see what our defense would have been without him over the years. Portis is good. I do feel like we are able to put a lot of guys in at RB and have success, but Portis definately was better than the rest. In our system, it makes sense to get a quality CB that a quality RB since the system allows many RBs to have success.
First of…there are no real RB out there.
Second..Tatum ran under a bad Oline in his first stint in Denver! So now this will definitely be better for him. Hopefully we keep tatum, aldridge as our speed back and torain, pittman and hillis as our bruisers for next year.
and Third we need a real corner to pair up with champ when he comes back! I was hoping for D.Hall…because K.Paymah is not the right corner for us in that system.
I just saw something in Marntinez that i just liked
Bell will get the job done….thats if he even starts, Young is getting healthy. we all have to remember 2 things Bell ran behind a patchy O-line and in an ofense that couldn’t throw the ball very well….I think with the fire power we have in Cut, Scheff, Marshall, Royal and Hillis….it’s gonna open a ton of running lanes for Bell to run through….defenses can’t key on the run like they used to cause we will beat them with the pass if they want to go there. I think the move was good….I said thurs. after Torain went down we need to go and get Tatum back….I stand behind that.
2champ4pickSIX: Tatum Bell as traded following the 2006 season on Mar. 2, 2007. Mike Anderson signed with Baltimore following the 2005 season during the 2006 offseason. Anderson and Tatum Bell did not play their last year together in Denver. Anderson’s last season in Denver was 2005 and Tatum Bell’s was in 2006. Mike Bell’s last season in Denver was 2007.
The one-two combo of T. Bell and Anderson was during the 2005 season and the double-Bell occurred during the 2006 campaign.
Tatum Bell had fumble problems in 2006 and Mike Bell had them in 2007. T. Bell had five fumbles in 2006, all were lost. Bell had some critical fumbles at inopportune times during the ’06 campaign, one in the season finale against San Francisco (Dec. 31, 2006) that was a turning point in that game and a huge blow to the Broncos qualifying as a wildcard that season.
That said, I think Bell was a good pickup for what was available this late in the season especially since he knows Denver’s system and has had past success in it.
T. Bell’s career statistics can be found at this URL: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/6800/career;_ylt=Avfel3ufDNn9sA__DNZ9DlT.uLYF
I think we should have picked up Najeh Davenport. the Steelers released him on 11/08. When he clears waivers we should pick him up. He is healthy, less prone to injury, a straight ahead runner and he DOESN”T fumble. I have a hard time believing that a guy who couldn’t stay on one of the WORST teams in the NFL is going to do a better job in orange & blue, just because he once wore the orange & blue.
for all the nay-sayers, this signing is only a patch up for the rest of the season, 4 RB’s on IR, Bell has played on this team and in this system for 3 years, makes perfect sense.. he’s not going to get a load of carries.. about 10-15 a game if that.. he will be a good change of pace back
I like the Davenport idea, but he has been having hamstring problems all year. That is a tough injury to shake. I realize the Tatum move is just a desperation move, but I still do not understand why he is a better choice than Mike Bell. Tatum fumbles a lot and gets hurt a lot.
Bell????Again???God,when will this madness end???
I can’t believe some people are really thinking that the Portis trade was a bad trade!! Come on guys, we got Champ in that trade and look at the turnovers he has caused FOR us. Getting turnovers on defense is better than losing them on offense, and CP had some fumbles too. Has had some in Washington as well, not to mention he has been hurt there too!
The reason I really love that trade isn’t just because we got Champ, if you remember we ALSO GOT A 2ND ROUND DRAFT PICK! We ended up using that 2nd round draft pick to get Tatum Bell, remember? Then we ended up trading Bell and Foster to Detroit for Dre Bly. So really if you look at what each team got from the CP-Champ trade, we definately won out! Got Champ, a pick for RB, trade the RB for another perrenial pro bowl corner, and has time would have it, the RB we traded away too. So trading Portis netted us, Champ, Bell, and Bly! How is that not good????
Washington makes out standing corners like we do running backs! It’s the system in my mind. We will see what he can do, as long as he is in shape I am willing to bet he rushes for 100 yards against the dirty birds!
Good points RSH thanks for the corrections. I miss Andersen because he was willing to do whatever it took to win. Remember him voluntarily switching to FB when we drafted Portis? Anyway on the 49ers fumble with T. Bell, was costly but we can’t put that game or especially that season on him. There were other games we should have won that we didn’t that year so it didn’t even come down to the final game. Who did we end up getting in the next years draft after that season, anyone?? If you wanna put not getting the wild card on Bell for that, you can also put the draft positions on Bell too! Good pick up for the timing!
Keep the faith broncos, hold onto the ball offense, and maintain your gaps defense! Can’t let the burner turner scortch us!!!
What do we have to lose. I think with all the talent on the offence when can get him on the edge and you all know his is threat to take it the distance it can’t hurt only help
To those who are down on tatum because of fumbles look at his stats. He has 10 career fumbles with over 500 career carries. The actual numbers equate to 1 fumble every 52 carries. And the season he hadthe most fumbles (5) he also had the most carries of his career and that season I believe the average was about 1 fumble per 46 catches. And that does not calculate his touches due to receiving which would make it more like a fumble per 60 touches…plus did he have punt or kickoff returns in his career as well??? i can’t remember. To contrast that with whoever had the bright idea of najeh davenport he also has 10 career fumbles with only 386 carries and average of 1 fumble per 38/39 carries. Man give the guy a break.