NFL: Le'Veon Bell continues holdout - will not report in 2018

InjuredChoker

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Dec 25, 2011
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What are the rules about his contract status? He got tagged, so there was a cutoff date, which has passed for him and the Steelers to come to a long term other, otherwise, he has no other option but to play on the Tag.

Now, if the Steelers were to cut him, I take it that makes him a free agent and he can sign anywhere for any amount?

yes.

As a RB, it's the most physical punishing skilled position. Life span is short. He's given the Steelers the 4 year rookie deal plus 1 Franchise Tag season already. Unfortunately for him, the rules are what the PA agreed to before he was drafted. Teams have the right to tag him multiple times.

Is there a deadline for him to sign the Franchise Tag contract and report? Steelers can't fine him if he's not under contract.

he has to play at least 6 games or he doesnt get an accrued year and can be tagged again. but i highly doubt he's willing to lose game checks, especially when they come in at almost 900K per game. vincent jackson did this back in 2010 but that was under much smaller tender, as that year there was no CBA so teams could just tender players with contract expiring 2010 and have them play under it for the season. that's why jackson made like 600K or something that year. 2011 he got an actual franchise tag and played every game, while making more per game than he made the whole previous season.

steelers can put him on roster exempt list for the first two weeks (salary would be negotiated separately for those two weeks) and if i'm not mistaken, they can do it now/when they have their 53 man roster set.
 
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tony d

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Such a great talent but all his talent isn't worth the constant headache that comes with him. Steelers should cut him loose.
 

StreetHawk

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yes.



he has to play at least 6 games or he doesnt get an accrued year and can be tagged again. but i highly doubt he's willing to lose game checks, especially when they come in at almost 900K per game. vincent jackson did this back in 2010 but that was under much smaller tender, as that year there was no CBA so teams could just tender players with contract expiring 2010 and have them play under it for the season. that's why jackson made like 600K or something that year. 2011 he got an actual franchise tag and played every game, while making more per game than he made the whole previous season.

steelers can put him on roster exempt list for the first two weeks (salary would be negotiated separately for those two weeks) and if i'm not mistaken, they can do it now/when they have their 53 man roster set.
I would bet that he signs on Friday and takes his physical and hop on the plane with the team to Cleveland. Do the walk through on Saturday. Likely would be limited in snaps for game 1 or possibly de-activated for week 1.

Steelers knew full well that he wanted a long term deal with some guaranteed money. If that didn’t happen he would not be happy and they would have to deal with it.
 

m9

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Such a great talent but all his talent isn't worth the constant headache that comes with him. Steelers should cut him loose.

There's no need to cut him loose at this point - they don't have a way to spend that extra cap money & they will get a comp pick when he leaves next year. For some reason the Steelers are quietly restructuring more contracts to create cap room, though that could mean a Ben extension is coming.
 

m9

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I doubt Bell would return a 1st or 2nd round pick. With his salary demands, it reduces what teams are willing to give up. I'd think Pitt could have gotten between a 3rd or 4th round pick for him.

The Steelers didn't have to tag him. If this is a headache for them, they could have let him walk and sign with another team. But, they knew full well that he wouldn't be happy playing on another FT. No player would, especially not in such a physically punishing position like RB. It's as much on them as it is on Bell. They could have done what Carolina did with Norman and rescinded the tag if they couldn't finalize a deal before the deadline to get a long term deal done, and let Bell walk. Then they could have moved on and not expected him to be on the roster.

IMO, Bell will report, but he's going to make the Steelers pay for not giving him a contract with term and guaranteed money. He'll sign the deal at the last minute. Doubt he passes up $850k a game.

I think someone would have been willing to give up a 2nd and sign him to that contract. Maybe a high 3rd, hard to say. There were plenty of teams with cap room looking for RB's this off-season and many of them invested high draft picks in the position instead.

And yes, the Steelers know all of their options and could have moved on. They have obviously decided this headache to be worth it. I would have gone in a different direction.
 

Rodgerwilco

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As a Pittsburgh fan, I am so sick of Le'Veon. This team is filled with a bunch of divas.

Ben, Brown, Bell, the three B's, all Divas. At least Bryant is gone now...
 

StreetHawk

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I think someone would have been willing to give up a 2nd and sign him to that contract. Maybe a high 3rd, hard to say. There were plenty of teams with cap room looking for RB's this off-season and many of them invested high draft picks in the position instead.

And yes, the Steelers know all of their options and could have moved on. They have obviously decided this headache to be worth it. I would have gone in a different direction.
Maybe but when you spend a high pick on a RB, in first or second round, the benefit is that you get them on low rookie contracts. With Bell, you have to pay him 8 figures along with giving up the pick.

Plus the wear and tear on a feature back like him through 5 years already. Think how soon demarco Murray was out of the league. Done after 7 years. 1,900 touches plus how many times he he stepped up to block a defender. Adds up.
 

m9

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As a Pittsburgh fan, I am so sick of Le'Veon. This team is filled with a bunch of divas.

Ben, Brown, Bell, the three B's, all Divas. At least Bryant is gone now...

Brown's not a very smart guy, but he's the hardest working guy on the team so I can deal with.

Can't really put him in the same category as Bell, though I 100% understand why he's sitting out as long as possible this season. I just wonder if we haven't heard the end of it this season - I can't see Bell playing through any minor injuries this year to preserve himself. Just a dumb situation the two sides have put themselves into.
 

Avs_19

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I think there are teams that might've made a play for Bell if the Steelers made him available. The Browns, Jets, and Colts come to mind. All three had and still have quite a bit of cap space. The Browns and Colts also had extra picks to use in a trade.
 

Rodgerwilco

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Brown's not a very smart guy, but he's the hardest working guy on the team so I can deal with.

Can't really put him in the same category as Bell, though I 100% understand why he's sitting out as long as possible this season. I just wonder if we haven't heard the end of it this season - I can't see Bell playing through any minor injuries this year to preserve himself. Just a dumb situation the two sides have put themselves into.
Yeah, I'll give AB slack, he works hard and produces and he stays on the field, not getting dumbass suspensions. He's the only one who gets a pass from me, but his media antics just bug me. He's a diva in the way that he complains about all the media attention and blah blah blah, then shows up to Training camp in a freaking HELICOPTER. lol.


Couldn't agree more about the bold.
 
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Ivan13

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How is Bell a diva? Because of this? He's the best player at his position and one of the most dangerous weapons in the game, who knows a shelf life of an RB can be rather short so he wants to get paid what he believes he is worth. I see no problem there.
 
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StreetHawk

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How is Bell a dive? Because of this? He's the best player at his position and one of the most dangerous weapons in the game, who knows a shelf life of an RB can be rather short so he wants to get paid what he believes he is worth. I see no problem there.
Plus he has NOT signed the contract so he is not in violation of anything.

He can opt not to sign the tag if he wants.

If that screws the Steelers season that sucks for them, but they knew full well that Bell didn’t want to get tagged for a second straight year. If his price is too hifh for Pitt, cut him loose and move on. Allocate hat cap space elsewhere. Shazier suffered what is expected to be a career ending neck injury on his rookie deal. Demarco Murray retired after 7 seasons. He had 1959 touches in reg season and playoffs. Bell in 5 years has 1635 touches in reg and playoffs. He’s 324 touches behind (basically 20 per game) which he would eclipse this year in his 6th season. Bell is also 1060 touches behind McCoy who has played 4 more years in the NFL. So, there is a lot of wear on him already.

He can’t play for pitt on anything other than the tag. So, either they cut him and he’s a free agent or he signs the tag. Bet on him signing on Friday.
 

Blackhawkswincup

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Bell's agent on ESPN right now trashing Steelers and NFL CBA

Sorry but franchise tag is not the greatest evil in world and the players agreed to allow it in CBA
 

StreetHawk

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Bell's agent on ESPN right now trashing Steelers and NFL CBA

Sorry but franchise tag is not the greatest evil in world and the players agreed to allow it in CBA
I’m sure he has other clients besides Bell. Bell wasn’t in the league to vote on the last Cba. But he had others who voted yes.

But he has to play by the rules that are in place.

But I would agree with a prior poster who said the the spirit of the tag is being abused by the steelers. Bell is a proven commodity so there isn’t is he worth the money question. And this is the second time he’s been tagged.

Feel for the guy as I would in 3 years time if guys like Hunt and Kamara continue to play well and get tagged like Bell has. RB is a brutal position on the body.

If the Steelers don’t want to commit long term with Bell fine. Move on from him. He hasn’t signed yet so he’s technically not violating his contract as he doesn’t have a valid one yet.
 

m9

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They have tried to commit to him long-term, he just wanted more money.

I understand both sides, but the Steelers should have seen this coming and moved on earlier this year.

I sense something is up with the Steelers. They are creating cap room and need help at OLB. Not sure if it involves Bell but moves are coming.
 

m9

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I’m sure he has other clients besides Bell. Bell wasn’t in the league to vote on the last Cba. But he had others who voted yes.

But he has to play by the rules that are in place.

But I would agree with a prior poster who said the the spirit of the tag is being abused by the steelers. Bell is a proven commodity so there isn’t is he worth the money question. And this is the second time he’s been tagged.

Feel for the guy as I would in 3 years time if guys like Hunt and Kamara continue to play well and get tagged like Bell has. RB is a brutal position on the body.

If the Steelers don’t want to commit long term with Bell fine. Move on from him. He hasn’t signed yet so he’s technically not violating his contract as he doesn’t have a valid one yet.

They have actively negotiated with him the entire time for 2 off-seasons. Saying the "spirit of the tag is being abused" is incredibly dumb.

Feel for the players that are put through the grinder of the sport and never see the big payday because they get injured before they have a chance to make real money. Bell was the highest paid RB in the league last year and when he signs will be paid as the highest RB again this season. Unless he chooses to hold out, he will have made 26 million+ over those two seasons and is in line for another massive payday in a few months.

Bell and the Steelers have had YEARS to figure this out and both sides haven't. Bell doesn't want to play because he doesn't want to risk injury. If he sits half the year he's missing out on millions he will never make back. The Steelers are in the final few years of their window with a top QB, and have 14 million tied to a player who might not even help them.

I question what the Steelers have done, but I have huge questions in regards to the advice Bell is getting from his agent.
 
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m9

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I can't embed Twitter at work, but this Bell situation is getting ugly for Pittsburgh.

Multiple players have ripped into Bell, including some of the main leaders of the team like Pouncey and Ramon Foster.
 

GKJ

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This never happens. If teammates are lashing out, imagine a new team where they don't know you.

I wouldn't put it past anyone that Bell is done in the NFL.
 
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I wouldn't put it past anyone that Bell is done in the NFL.

source.gif
 

m9

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This never happens. If teammates are lashing out, imagine a new team where they don't know you.

I wouldn't put it past anyone that Bell is done in the NFL.

It's not going this far, but it's pretty obvious his teammates feel like they were lied to by Bell.

Bell's only obvious out to save this quickly would be to fire his agent, sign the tag and tell everyone he was getting bad advice. Seems unlikely though.
 

Blackhawkswincup

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Seeing these type of reaction instead of the "We understand its a business" , etc type responses make me think Bell was not well liked in locker room to begin with
 

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