Le'Veon Bell is one of the favorites to end the season as the NFL rushing leader.
The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t had Le’Veon Bell on board since last season, even though he is still technically under contract. As the team couldn’t come to an agreement with Bell about him wanting a large chunk of his money being guaranteed up front, Bell decided to take a gamble and hold out for now what has become more than half of the season. And since Bell did not sign his franchise tender before the trade deadline, he was not able to be traded away.
Bell now has until next week to return to the Steelers facility before he is no longer able to play in 2018. Although Bell did not tell anybody what his plans were, he did send out a tweet on Monday that indicated that he may be on his way back to Pittsburgh. The timing of the tweet absolutely makes sense.
Bell Going Back to Pittsburgh?
Fairwell Miami 👋🏾
Steelers Are Still Lost
Although Le’Veon Bell told Twitter he was leaving behind his Jet Ski’s in Miami, nobody is exactly sure where the Pro Bowl running back is going. Sure, we can assume he’s headed back to Pittsburgh, but if you ask the team, they have no idea. ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter claims that the team is still unaware of Bell’s plans. And quite frankly, it doesn’t seem like it matters to them much as they are getting ready for a tough matchup this week.
At this point, implementing Bell back into the offense may be the last of the Steelers worries right now. After a slow start to the season, Pittsburgh picked things back up and are now 5-2-1 on the season, as they are sitting on top of the AFC North. Could they use Bell? Sure. But if they do get him back, he might just end up being a distraction.
You know the saying, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Well, the Steelers backfield is definitely the least of their worries. With James Conner rushing for 706 yards on the season, he’s only behind Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley. A return for Bell could very well just be another distraction for the Steelers heading into the second half of the season.