Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell plans to appeal his four-game suspension for a violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy “sometime in August,” he told reporters Thursday (via Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com). Bell added that the league notified him of his suspension in March after he missed a drug test. Although appealing the suspension will disrupt Bell’s rehab from the torn MCL and PCL he suffered last season, the 24-year-old is confident he’ll be ready for Week 1 if he’s eligible to play. And Bell expects his appeal to be victorious. “I’m gonna win the appeal,” he said, per Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review. “(People) have no idea what happened.”
More from the AFC:
- Broncos receiver Emmanuel Sanders provided an update on his contract situation Thursday, revealing that extension negotiations between his agent and the club are going “back and forth,” according to Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. Sanders, 29, is set to earn $5.6MM in 2016, which is the third and final year of the somewhat modest accord he signed as a free agent in 2014. The 5-foot-11, 180-pounder has since totaled 177 receptions, 2,539 yards and 15 touchdowns in 31 regular-season games, thus setting himself up for a significant raise. Sanders insisted Thursday that money isn’t his top priority, however. “I said it from Day One — I’m not trying to break the bank. I want to be here. But I also want a fair deal, and I want a fair deal for the production I’ve been putting out, so we’ll see how it goes,” said Sanders, who hauled in 16 passes for 230 yards during the Broncos’ three playoff wins – including Super Bowl 50 – last winter.
- Aside from offensive line, receiver and defensive end, depth is likely to pose a major problem for the Dolphins this year, opines Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Miami, which went 6-10 in 2015 and finished last in the AFC East, is light at defensive tackle, cornerback, linebacker and tight end, writes Kelly, who also doesn’t see enough game-changing talent on the roster in general.
- In case you missed it, the Chiefs and contract-year defensive tackle Dontari Poe aren’t making progress on a new deal.
Bell better have a real serious case or he’s just going to further damage his already tarnished reputation. In a contract year it’s wiser to just bite the bullet and take your punishment than to come out saying that you are going to win. As a steelers fan I would rather he just own up than make a fool of himself.
Well I hope he wins his appeal, we need him on the field not sitting at home.
Omar Kelly won’t be happy till we have every super star player in the league on the roster!