Kevin Colbert Wishes Le’Veon Bell Was a Steeler for Whole Career
On several occasions over the last year, former Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell has expressed regret over leaving the Steelers in 2019. He even wore a Black and Gold Steelers-themed outfit when entering the ring with Antonio Brown last week for his boxing match.
Bell cashed in on a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the New York Jets, but he learned that not every franchise operates like the Steelers and has the kind of leadership that Mike Tomlin possesses.
Former Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert recently said on the All Things Covered podcast that he wished things panned out differently with Bell and that he was a Steeler for his entire career.
“He created a market for himself,” Colbert said. “We tried to get a contract done and, unfortunately, we didn’t. And it was disappointing. I saw Le’Veon came to one of our games last year and we hug and talk. He’s doing good. I wish he would have stayed with us for his whole career because it could have been special.”
Bell held out the entire 2018 season due a contract dispute with the Steelers. He refused to play on the franchise tag. He was never the same after that as he fizzled out with the New York Jets and had short stints with the Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens before exiting the league.
“If you take a year off in your career, it’s hard to get back out there,” Colbert said. “I don’t think he found the same traction. I was disappointed for him. We tried to do move on, and we did the best we could, and we wished him luck. But I wish we would’ve had him. But we didn’t. And that’s just the way this thing goes sometimes.”
Bell was in town for the Steelers-Bengals game last December, and decided to drop by the facility to see his former coach, Mike Tomlin, and hang around the team.
“Hey man, we are in here,” https://twitter.com/TheStandard412/status/1738282312888959166″>Bell
said in a video posted to Snapchat. “I haven’t been in this facility, this parking lot, for so long…It’s crazy. We and Coach T bro, we still like this (close to each other). I was tripping, bro. Damn was I tripping. Why did y’all not tell me not to leave?”
Le’Veon Bell expressed similar regrets this summer about how his tenure in Pittsburgh ended. He apologized for how he left and asked for forgiveness from the fanbase.
“You know, I’ve gotten requests to come on podcasts and all the know, but really you’re right. I never apologized to the fans and they really should know,” Bell said. “For leaving the Steelers, I never apologized. I want to say that I apologize for leaving the best damn fans in this world. I shouldn’t have left. I should’ve never left. I apologize, that’s my fault, that’s on me.”
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