:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/25709435/20131220_kkt_al8_638.0.jpg)
It could be the least surprising award given this season.
The Pittsburgh chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America voted Le'Veon Bell as the recipient of the 2014 Joe Greene Great Performance award, given annually to the team's top rookie.
Bell has 770 rushing yards and eight touchdowns to go along with his 393 receiving yards, giving him 1,163 total yards from scrimmage - just shy of Franco Harris's rookie record of 1,235 in his 14-game rookie season of 1972.
Certainly an achievable mark, but creating the kind of impact Harris did in his rookie season may be tougher. Bell will have something of an opportunity to be a part of something miraculous, given the odds of what needs to happen for the Steelers to qualify for the postseason. If Pittsburgh beats Cleveland in their 1 p.m. game, and also see losses from Baltimore (at Cincinnati) and Miami (vs. Jets), all eyes will be trained on the Chiefs at Chargers game, in which a Chargers loss would clinch the sixth seed for the Steelers in the next week's AFC Wild Card round.
The absence of a playoff berth in his rookie season wouldn't be the shining characteristic of Bell's rookie year. Clearly, he's a strong piece of the Steelers' future foundation, having become the first rookie to rush for 100 yards in a game since Willie Parker in 2004.
Cornerback Ike Taylor was given the PFWA's Chief Award, honoring the player who was most cooperative with the media.
