For the second consecutive year in his young career, the Pittsburgh Steelers will begin the season without their star running back, as it has been reported that Le'Veon Bell faces a four-game suspension for a missed drug test. Speculation that Bell might have put himself into the bind had gone around as early as June, but at the time it was dismissed by the 2014 team MVP. ESPN has now confirmed the report via its league insider Dan Graziano, who also says that Bell plans to appeal.
Fans will recall that Bell received a four-game suspension over a marijuana bust going into the 2015 season, but had his term lowered to two games upon appeal. Two months into the calendar he would suffer a season-ending MCL tear, bringing his year to an abrupt end for the second year in a row. At 24-years-old, Bell, who is universally renounced as one of the top RB in the league, will be playing out the final year of his rookie contract in 2016. While he will undoubtedly draw the interest of a host of organizations willing to put down big dollars, labels marking him a drug-test liability and injury prone talent do stand to work against him in negotiations.
If 2016 kicks off anything like 2015 did, they might have no reason to fret, with rock solid NFL veteran DeAngelo Williams filling in. Williams put up 907 yards and 11 touchdowns through 16 games last season, with much of that production coming in Bell's absence.
Source: sbnation.com
