new contract and teammates’ comments altered Le’Veon Bell’s return plans While there are many names within the national media who attempt to speak on behalf of Le’Veon Bell Jordan Berry Jersey , few of them actually have any intimate knowledge of his situation with the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, one exception to that statement might be NFL Network analyst and former Jacksonville Jaguars’ running back Maurice Jones-Drew. Having had the same agent as Bell and also one of his friends with whom he speaks fairly regularly, Jones-Drew probably has had more contact with the Steelers’ absentee running back than anybody else in the organization in recent weeks. If we assume his insights have more value than most, then his appearance as a guest on the Rich Eisen Show revealed some telling information about Bell’s current thought processes. Perhaps his most interesting revelation was his take on why Bell didn’t show up for the start of the season. As Eisen observed in his opening question, his agent, Adisa Bakari, had always implied the plans for his client would closely follow the way he had approached the 2017 season when playing under the franchise tag, barring something exceptional happening. When it became obvious Bell wasn’t going to arrive in Pittsburgh for opening day, Bakari appeared on a radio show suggesting something out of the ordinary must have occurred to change his client’s mind, but no answer was ever given to questions about what that incident was.Jones-Drew did his best to explain what this exceptional circumstance had been when speaking with Eisen, and it turns out Bell’s continued absence is not inspired by only one event.With Johnson signing a three year deal that included a $30 million guarantee and Gurley a four year extension with potentially as much as $45 million guaranteed, Jones-Drew is clearly voicing Bell’s displeasure when he noted the level of guarantees the Steelers were offering.It’s worth noting that $19 million is a much lower figure than the $33 million in guarantees reported in July, when Pittsburgh made their last offer to Bell. But perhaps Jones-Drew is referring to the signing bonus amount the Steelers offered him and a number more in line with the figure expected. Citing James Conner’s 37 touches in Week 1 as proof his friend was right to sit out, Jones-Drew was quick to explain Bell’s continual appearances on TMZ’s website as a consequence of being a “music artist” doing “other things.” Claiming Bell was still training, despite how he looked when last filmed in Miami, laughably http://www.steelerscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-stephon-tuitt-jersey , Eisen concurred, adding that he “looks great.”Jones-Drew’s suggestion that he wouldn't show up until Week 11 if he was in Bell’s shoes gives a fairly strong indication that this is probably his friend’s intention too, but it seems clear that Pittsburgh should see their star runner return by then, if Jones-Drew really is repeating what Bell has already told him.While we’re wary of putting too much stock in the words of an analyst from the NFL Network, much of what Jones-Drew said appears to fit with decisions Bell has made to this point. And if the Steelers’ running back is listening to the advice coming for the former NFL back, it seems obvious his holdout will not be ending anytime soon either.Losing Well: A Look Back to 2006 when the Falcons met the Steelers in Atlanta The year was 2006 and I was living in southwest Virginia. I had lost 30 or so pounds over the previous few months — chemotherapy will do that to you. My cancer treatments left me, weirdly, both listless and tired, and often unable to sleep. Though I was confident I would be okay (my oncologist told me that, in their more macabre and honest moments, doctors call Hodgkins’ lymphoma the “good cancer” because it has a very high cure rate. Nevertheless, I began putting together a mental bucket-list. On that list back then, and still on that list now, was “fly on a private jet.” On that list then, but now checked off was, “See a Steelers game from a luxury box.”Charlotte was the closest NFL city to me Vince Williams Jersey , but we played there only once every eight years. Nashville was next closest and I was blessed over the years to attend Steelers games there. A close friend had season tickets and was always gracious to invite me over for Steeler Sunday. Atlanta was third closest, but again, those matchups were only once every eight years. But 2006 happened to be one of those years. One of my dearest and closest friends lived in Atlanta and, like me, loved the Steelers.That friend, Tim O’Brien, was like me in almost every way. He grew up in a Pittsburgh suburb, while I was just outside the band of bedroom communities, out in the sticks. He was Irish, as am I. He shared a nicotine addiction with me, as well as a deep love of all things Pittsburgh. We met twenty years earlier in college at Grove City, where every Sunday, we’d watch the game on my 10-inch black-and-white TV.He and I were together years later, downing chili dogs from Sheetz as we watched on his TV when Sid slid and the Pirates’ season came to an end. So I sent him an email to ask if he, now a corporate muckety-muck but still the same good man, had any connections by which I could score a couple of tickets.He told me he’d look into it. Eventually word came back that he had tickets and plans were made. He refused to take my money and he led the way into the Georgia Dome Ramon Foster Jersey , up an escalator, past attentive ushers and through a door into our own private luxury suite. There was a spread laid out for us, large screen TV’s, cold refreshments in the fridge, and seats looking out on the field. Getting there had worn down my battered body, but being there lifted my spirits. I not only got to check “luxury box” off of my bucket-list, I got to do it with my oldest friend.The game itself was a seesaw battle. Michael Vick was still young Mike Vick. Hines scored a 70-yard TD on a pass from Charlie Batch and ran right out of his shoe on the way to pay dirt. Warrick Dunn scored, Santonio and Fast Willie each coughed it up. But the root of our demise was one Alge Crumpler, the Falcons’ tight end. This man was so huge that he made Eric Green look like Don Beebe. And he had a huge day as I watched from that luxury box, hauling in three touchdown passes. The Steelers dropped to 2-4 on their way to an 8-8 season. I, like that forlorn soul who had been turned into a newt by the witch, got better. And so did the Steelers. We might be on our way to another mediocre season this year, but you can find a way to redeem it anyway. Enjoy your friends and family — and give thanks that you're not a Browns fan. Clearance NFL Jerseys