Latest On Le’Veon Bell

The Steelers can technically net a compensatory draft pick by revoking Le’Veon Bell‘s tag and losing him to another team, but their previous free agency signings would cancel out the loss of the running back, as Mike Florio of PFT writes. 

The Steelers didn’t have the splashiest offseason out there, but they did sign safety Morgan Burnett and linebacker Jon Bostic while losing only tackle Chris Hubbard – all of whom count in the formula. Therefore, if there were to lose Bell right now, it wouldn’t do anything to help their case in terms of 2019 draft picks.

On the other hand, losing Bell as a free agent next year would make a positive mark on their 2020 comp pick formula, provided that they do not add too many compensatory free agents.

So, the Steelers are likely still using a 2020 third-round pick as a reference point in trade talks and would not accept anything less than that in a deal. A 2019 third-round pick could convince them to pull the trigger on a trade, since it carries a higher value and would give them less to worry about when it comes to the 2020 comp formula.

There’s no shortage of teams that would like to land Bell, but any club acquiring him via trade would have to wait until after the season to negotiate a long-term deal. That, coupled with the fact that Bell wants to shatter the market for running backs, will limit the Steelers’ potential return. Still, the Jets have already phoned the Steelers, and other clubs have surely opened up trade talks with GM Kevin Colbert.

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