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Steelers fans will have to wait longer to see a full dosage of Le'Veon Bell in the Pittsburgh backfield. The team reported today that Bell will not play against the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend for the team's third preseason game.
To make matters worse, the injury appears to be a buzz word for foot injuries this year.
Steelers believe Le'Veon Bell has Lis Franc injury they r hoping will not require surgery but won't be sure until he gets it double checked
— Jay Glazer (@JayGlazer) August 21, 2013
Tomlin said today that Bell will be seeking a second doctor's opinion on his injury, and even the first reports shy away from the need from surgery, but this does not bode well for the former Michigan State Spartan's rookie campaign. After missing the team's first preseason injury due to a knee injury, this news only means it will be a little while longer before the world sees a full dosage of a Pittsburgh backfield with Bell.
The rookie running back comes into a backfield that did not have a 1,000 yard rusher in 2012 and was hoping to find a feature back to carry the load this year. Bell responded to a series of negative tweets to his account with the affirmation that he will rise above his current situation, and that he'll remember those who were against him when his chips were down.
I favorite all the negative tweets...I'll NEVER forget, that's for sure...I'll come back and be stronger than before
— LeVeon Bell (@L_Bell26) August 20, 2013
If anything, this injury shows that any notion the Steelers were lacking any strength conditioning that led to why the injury cloud hovered over them in recent years, was most likely a wild speculation that was being held onto. Tomlin's physical camp and the improvement of several players' conditioning during this off-season showed a concrete change in tone for the 2013 Steelers training camp and practices. Yet the Steelers have already lost Plaxico Burress for the season, tight end Matt Spaeth for an extended period of time, and are still awaiting the return of Cortez Allen and others from injuries that occurred during the 2013 training camp.
Hopefully Bell will be able to recover soon and show the world why he was drafted so early by the Steelers. This writer thinks he will be able to prove the latter in 2013.