Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images LeVeon Bell #26 of the New York Jets runs the ball and gets tackled by Trent Murphy #93 of the Buffalo Bills during the first quarter at Bills Stadium on September 13, 2020.
It appears that former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell is ready to return to the playing field for the winless New York Jets. On Saturday the Jets activated Bell off injured reserve, indicating that he’s ready to go against the 2-2 Arizona Cardinals at MetLife Stadium.
Jets activated RB Le’Veon Bell off IR, signed OL Jimmy Murray to the active roster and elevated QB Mike White and DB Lamar Jackson from the practice squad.
Jets also released LB Alec Ogletree and WR Josh Malone.
In fact, at a virtual press conference Jets head coach Adam Gase indicated that Bell “feels even better now” than he did before the season-opener, when he gained just 14 yards on six carries.
“He did a good job of, one, getting healthy and then staying in good shape,” Gase said. “Did a good job making sure that he maintained where his weight was. It’s pretty easy, especially when you have a hamstring issue to where you can’t do what you’re normally used to doing, he did a great job as far as making sure he stayed right where he was at when he got hurt. I think he feels even better now than he did when we kind of hit that first game.”
Bell injured his hamstring in New York’s season-opening loss to the Buffalo Bills and went on injured reserve two days later. As a result, he missed the team’s losses to the San Francisco 49ers, Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.
Joe Flacco to Make First Start for New York Jets
Notably, though, Bell won’t be taking handoffs or catching passes from Jets starter Sam Darnold (out with a shoulder injury). Instead he’ll be working alongside former Baltimore Ravens and Denver Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco, 35, who will make his first start for the Jets.
“I’m not looking at it in terms of bringing a spark,” Flacco said, while taking questions from the media. “Of course, we want to get things rolling as a team and kind of get our morale up and get us headed in the right direction. But not one guy, including myself, can try to do too much. We just have to go out there, take it play-by-play and let things fall in place.”
Flacco signed a one-year contract with the Jets in March. He has a 98-73 mark as a starting quarterback in the NFL and has passed for 40,083 yards over the course of his career.
He appeared briefly (5 snaps) in the team’s loss against the Broncos, completing 2 of 2 passes for 16 yards.
Steelers’ Trey Edmunds Elevated From Practice Squad
In other news, on Saturday afternoon the Steelers elevated running back Trey Edmunds from the team’s practice squad, meaning he is likely to play against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
We have elevated RB Trey Edmunds from the practice squad to the active/inactive roster for Sunday’s game against the Eagles.
After the game, Edmunds will automatically revert to the practice squad without having to pass through waivers.
It was an expected move, as Edmunds will, in effect, take the place of fullback Derek Watt, who has already been ruled “out” with a hamstring injury.
As noted by the tweet above, after the Eagles game, “Edmunds will automatically revert to the practice squad without having to pass through waivers.”
In 2019, Edmunds appeared in 11 games for the Steelers and had 22 carries for 92 yards along with six receptions for 48 yards. But it remains to be seen whether he will see any action as a substitute fullback; instead his role is likely to be limited to special teams.
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Jets Activate Le’Veon Bell, Steelers Elevate Trey Edmunds