Le’Veon Bell Will be Welcome Back in Pittsburgh Once Standoff is Over

Pro-Bowl running back Le’Veon Bell continues to abstain from Pittsburgh Steelers team activities. The standoff has ran for longer than anyone thought it would. Le’Veon Bell was expected to rejoin the Steelers in time for the start of the season.

That didn’t pan out, however, and Le’Veon Bell was removed from the Steelers’ depth chart this week.

The situation appeared to be getting nasty, as Bell was criticized by his teammates last week. NFL Network’s Maurice Jones-Drew provided an update on the situation on the Dave Dameshek Football Program this week.

Want $250 to bet on the NFL?

“[Bell] said to me: ‘people think that I don’t like Pittsburgh, I don’t like James Conner, I don’t like these guys,'” Jones-Drew said.

“He was like yes, I was disappointed they went out and spoke about my contract, understandably so. He was like, but I still want them to do well. They’re still guys that I work with and guys that I’ve put in this extra work with. Blood, sweat and tears like I still want them to do well.”

Read: NFL Week 2 Betting Lines – Panthers @ Falcons

“[Bell] was happy for Conner after that performance but that performance justifies why he’s not there right now,” Jones-Drew said. If you’re going to give James Conner 31 carries, imagine how many you’d give to Le’Veon Bell?”

Bell has a $14.54 million franchise tag tender on the table, which he has yet to sign. He would need to report by Week 10 to earn an accrued year toward free agency. That way, he would go on the open market in 2019.

Neither Bell or his agent, Adisa Bakari, have said publicly what the player intends to do.

Despite the criticism, his Steelers teammates would welcome the talented playmaker back into the fold.

Guard Ramon Foster, who criticized him last week, said “of course, absolutely.”

“It wasn’t a question about us welcoming him or not welcoming him, it was about what was going to go on.”