Le’Veon Bell was unable to come to an agreement on a long-term contract extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but it sounds like the team made him a pretty respectable offer.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports that the Steelers offered Bell $42 million over three years, which would be a higher average annual value than the $12.1 million he will make in 2017 playing under the franchise tag.
#Steelers' offer to Le'Veon Bell averaged over $12M per, with $30M in first 2 years, $42M over 3, per sources. Decided to play on $12.1M tag
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 18, 2017
Bell, 25, would have likely been fine with the average annual value, but he is probably seeking more future guarantees. As Pelissero notes, the Steelers don’t typically offer those types of deals.
#Steelers don't do guarantees in future years, so there's risk either way. But clearly Bell is betting on himself here.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) July 18, 2017
Bell is going to make roughly $4 million more than the second-highest paid running back in the NFL next year. Assuming he signs his franchise tender, he is already guaranteed $12.1 million.
From Pittsburgh’s view, Bell is a franchise-altering talent with a long injury history and some off-field issues. That can make negotiations quite complicated. By betting on himself, Bell likely believes he can get at least the same deal from the Steelers next offseason — and that’s after pocketing $12.1 million in 2017. His comments on Monday may have indicated he is a bit irritated, but the Pro Bowler had to have seen this coming.
