To many of his peers and those who have lived through the perils of high-level football Le'Veon Bell is an inspiration and a hero. To some teammates and many fans in the Steel City he's a selfish bum. Whatever side you are on we can all agree that the guy delivers on the field. In fact to this day no running back in NFL history averages more yards per game. And while he is almost surely done in Pittsburgh the 26-year-old has plenty left in the tank wherever he ends up in 2019. Who knows down the road he may be considered as important to the future of the NFL as Colin Kaepernick in standing up for players' rights especially as the next CBA deadline approaches. Presented here is the helmet Bell wore for the entire 2016 season including the playoffs when hebroke multiple records. The battle-scarred helmet can be photo-matchedto every game and is sourced directly from the Steelers with teamcertification.

In just 12 games in 2016 coming off injury and suspension Le'Veonrushed for 1268 yards (105.7 ypg) and added 616 more through the airhelping lead Pittsburgh to the AFC North title. The highlight of the regular season wasWeek 14's snow-packed classic in Buffalo when Bell broke the Steelers'single-game rushing record with 236 yards. He ran for three touchdownsin the 27-20 road win and added 62 receiving yards to finish just twoshy of 300 total yards from scrimmage. He continued his torrid stretch with back-to-backplayoff outbursts of 167 and 170 rushing yards propelling his team towins over Miami and K.C. In each game Bell set and reset the franchise 'splayoff rushing mark. Moreover no player in NFL history has ever rushedfor more yards (337) in his first two career playoff games. He did allthat wearing this very helmet—his first gamer offered publicly.

The black shell of the Riddell helmetexhibits plenty of scrapes paint transfers and other contact marks. A large Steelers logo decal adorns the right side with Bell’s No.“26” decals on the forehead and rear flanking the gold stripe thatruns the entire length of the shell. A rubber “Steelers” label appearsover the forehead obscuring the manufacturer. The NFL shield and USAflag decals along with the warning sticker are affixed to the rear. Onthe interior is the Riddell patent manufacturing sticker dated“FEB-2016” by the left earhole with a decal on the opposite side reading“Initial Season 2016 – Maximum life 10 years with annualrecertification.” Just below is the Steelers Authentic Memorabiliahologram sticker (GU-105659). Two warning labels and two size Largestickers are also found inside. An unmarked rubber neck pad and acustomized black gel-padded cushioning in the ceiling are both present.

The exterior design of the shell withsix air ventilation holes (in addition to earholes) along with theprotective Plexiglas visor matches perfectly to game photos of Bellthroughout the season. The original facemask shows many punctures. Even the well-used pink mouthpiece appears tobe match. The only component of this helmet that changed during thecourse of the season was the chinstrap. Le’Veon used a different one upuntil Week 15 at Cincy before switching to the one present. He used thisfeatured mouthpiece with a custom black and white cushioning and aninternal blue gel pad in the final two regular season contests as well asall three playoff games in January 2017. There is no need for a thirdparty photo-match; the game images available speak for themselves. Theaccumulation of wear is easily identifiable from the beginning of the2016 season. Furthermore we know from past dealings that Steelers gameequipment especially helmets are often used by players for the entirelength of the season due to a rather frugal budget compared with otherteams.

Included with two Steelers AuthenticMemorabilia COA's are the two military decals that Bell affixed to theback of his helmet (along with his Steelers teammates) throughoutNovember 2016 for NFL's Salute to Service month. These games include11/6 at Baltimore 11/13 vs. Dallas 11/20 at Cleveland and 11/24 atIndy. Bell chose to honor the U.S. Air Force with its blue circularsticker. The Salute to Service camouflage ribbon decal appeared on theback of every player's helmet for the entire month.