Le'Veon Bell will
hit the free agent market with no strings attached. Pittsburgh
Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert told reporters on
Wednesday that the team will not use the transition tag on Bell.
The Steelers realize that LeVeon Bell is still a good
football player, however the Steelers also realize that they have to let him
go.
Le'Veon will be an unrestricted free agent at the start of
the new league year.
The idea of Pittsburgh slapping the transition tag on Bell
had been bandied about as an option the Steelers could
attempt to utilize possibly to match a contract offer. The other idea rumored
had been that Pittsburgh might use the transition tag as a potential mechanism
to trade Bell and thus receive immediate compensation for the running back,
which would have been exceedingly difficult to pull off. Pittsburgh is in line
to receive a compensatory draft pick in 2020 once Bell leaves in free agency.
Using the transition tag always seemed like a longshot
option. Colbert confirms that longshot turns into zilch.
Bell will now hit the open market untethered, which was the
dual-threat running back's goal when refusing to sign the $14.5 million
franchise tag last year and sitting out the entire season.
Now Bell needs to find a team willing to compensate him at
his desired rate.
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