Le’Veon Bell announces when he will return from holdout
Pittsburgh Steelers star running back Le’Veon Bell hasn’t heard the number he wants in a long-term contract, so he’s held out. That hold out will end soon.
Le’Veon Bell may be holding out this offseason after not getting the long-term extension he craves, but he still cares about the fantasy football junkies.
9-1-17 😉 https://t.co/8Sj7MvzD79
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) August 23, 2017
Bell took to Twitter on Tuesday night to announce that he will be returning on the first of September, nine days ahead of the Steelers’ season-opener against the Cleveland Browns.
The situation with Bell is a very interesting one to me. Of course, Bell is one of the most talented and all-around best running backs in the game today. That being said, he’s asking for more money on a per-year basis (over $15 million) than he has total touchdowns (12) in the past two seasons combined.
Add in the fact that Bell had a career-high four fumbles last season, and the decision to turn down whatever lucrative offer the Steelers made to him is a puzzling one, to say the least.
That’s not even to mention, Bell is one infraction away from a very lengthy suspension from the NFL after serving a suspension last season.
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Bell also plays a position that has seemingly the shortest lifespan in pro football.
In case you hadn’t picked up on it yet, I think Bell should have accepted the long-term offer he received from the Steelers, if there was one. If he hasn’t, the aforementioned facts can’t be discounted when some team is getting set to cut Bell a check.
If the Steelers can’t settle a long-term deal with Bell in the near future, there may be rumors that pop up about whether or not he should be traded, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.
There’s now long-term uncertainty at the quarterback position with Ben Roethlisberger nearly retiring this offseason, and there’s long-term uncertainty with Bell. If the Steelers are only going to have one or both for one more season, they might as well stick it out and see if they can win it all.
If I were the Steelers, I would seriously consider trading Bell to the highest bidder, and bring back DeAngelo Williams to compete and pair with James Conner for a season.