As expected Le'Veon Bell has not shown up for voluntary Phase 1 of the Pittsburgh Steelers OTA's. A question fans are itching to know is, when will the star running back return to the Steelers facility.
Not signing the franchise tag means Bell does not have to report to any voluntary or mandatory practices organized by the Steelers. While Bell has not made it clear if he will attend any practices in Pittsburgh, he is doing his own training in Miami, Florida. The team and Bell have until July 16 to come to an agreement on a long-term deal.
Sharing his thoughts on Le'Veon Bell with PFT Live GM Kevin Colbert said, “Unless he did something that he didn’t do last year, I think we can assume that if we don’t get a long-term deal done he’ll show up and he’ll be as ready as he can be. Ideally, [we] would love to have him there for training camp. Not only for himself but for the rest of the team.”
Having the star running back fully involved this season gives the team a higher chance to hopefully win a seventh Super Bowl. As for the fans, many believe the Super Bowl window is closing up and fans do not want any obstacles coming in the way of winning a seventh Lombardi trophy.
Talking OTA's and training camp with PFT Live Colbert said,“I think any player that misses camp — in his case it’s not a holdout if he hasn’t signed.” Discussing whether Le'veon Bell will or will not report for minicamp Colbert said,“He’s not required to be there. . . . I think it does affect that player but I think it affects his teammates as well because they don’t get to work together. He had a productive year without coming to camp last year. Were we as good as we could’ve been especially early? Probably not. Hopefully, again, we can get something done long-term. He plugs in, there’s no distractions, and we go all try to win a Super Bowl.”
Putting contract negotiations aside, many fans would agree having Bell show up for minicamp not only benefits him but his teammates as well. Creating a rhythm and strong relationships between teammates can improve the offense even more.
Not seeing Bell for the Phase 1 of OTA's already has fans believing a repeat of not showing up last offseason will occur again this year. “[H]e’ll be a Pittsburgh Steeler in 2018,” Colbert said. While fans remain skeptical, Colbert continues to feel positive on getting a deal done before training camp starts.
