This paper examines the connections between the continuing cyclic plastic deformation, the etching effects, and the fatigue life of a high-strength bearing steel under rolling contact. Etching effects, called the “dark etching regions” and the “white etching bands,” are observed after several million cycles. The inclinations of the white etching bands vary between 20 to 30 deg and 70 to 80 deg to the rolling direction, depending on the loading conditions and geometry of the rolling elements. The principal axes of stress and plastic strain rotate continuously as the rolling element translates over a fixed point below the running surface. At the same time, the cyclic plastic activity varies. A finite element model is used to calculate the inclinations and amounts of cyclic plastic strain as the roller translates over the running surface. The calculations are performed for both elastic linear kinematic-hardening plastic (ELKP) and elastic perfectlyplastic (EPP) material behaviors. Inclinations of concentrated plastic strain activity combined with low hydrostatic pressure are identified. There is a good correlation between the inclinations of the white etching bands and the inclinations of concentrated plastic activity calculated for the ELKP material behavior. No such correlation is obtained for the EPP behavior. Strain concentrations are intensified by the hydrostatic pressure dependence of the kinematic yield strength. While an equal amount of plastic strain activity occurs in the conjugate directions, no etching bands are observed at these inclinations. The reasons for this are not clear. The shakedown limit obtained for the two models is essentially the same. The fatigue lives under rolling contact are compared with the lives obtained in simple cyclic torsion experiments with the same cyclic plastic strain amplitudes. The rotation of the principal shear direction and the high hydrostatic pressure attending rolling contact may be responsible for the seven orders-of-magnitude longer contact lives.