MONDAY, 1:24pm: The Steelers have officially placed Bell on injured reserve, ending his season, the team announced today. Pittsburgh has signed running back Isaiah Pead to take Bell’s spot on the roster.
SUNDAY, 9:09pm: The Steelers were able to get Ben Roethlisberger back in the lineup in time for today’s game against the Bengals, but star running back Le’Veon Bell was carted off with a knee injury. The team was optimistic that it is only an MCL injury with no damage to the ACL based on the initial exam.
However, the MRI showed that Bell had a significant MCL injury, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter). According to Schefter, the team will continue to evaluate the injury, but he is expected to be placed on season-ending injured reserve.
With Bell out, DeAngelo Williams should take back the starting role that began the season in. He carried the ball 41 times in the first two games with Bell serving a suspension, but had only 13 attempts in the subsequent five games in a backup role, before filling in today after the injury. He had 71 yards on nine carries, including a 55-yard rush for his season long.
Dri Archer and Jordan Todman are the other runners on the active roster. Fitzgerald Toussaint is on the practice squad, but the team will likely bring a number of backs in to work out this week.
Former Rams halfback Isaiah Pead will be the first to work out for the Steelers, visiting the Steelers tomorrow, writes Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Rapoport believes the team could sign him and get him acclimated to the team quickly.
Stick a fork in our season?
D Will might not be the sexy name but he proved to be a more than enough capable starter in his place…now that big Ben is back that should only help open up the run game for him to be successful like he was the 1st couple of games.He is no Bell by any means but the best replacement at this time by knowing their system