Pittsburgh Steelers rookie running back Le’Veon Bell has ditched the walking boot on his sprained foot and said Monday that he thinks he’ll be back on the field a lot sooner than many people expect.
“It feels good to have the boot off – just walking around in regular shoes,” said Bell. “It feels good to jog and all types of things. I’m going to try to get better, let my foot get back to a full hundred.”
As far as when Bell thinks he might be ready to play again, he told Scott Brown of ESPN that he is targeting the second game of the season, but also added that he won’t return until he is fully recovered.
This certainly is encouraging news, but a return date has not been not set in stone just yet. Bell told reporters that he can only jog right now, so he will still have to start running and cutting before he’ll be allowed to practice and play.
Bell sprained his foot in the second preseason game against the Washington Redskins, but at least it did not require surgery.
Head coach Mike Tomlin will hold his first regular season press conference on Tuesday, so perhaps he will be asked to give a progress report of sorts on the Steelers second-round draft pick.
For now, expect Bell to sit out the Sunday preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans and from that point forward you might as well consider his status as being week-to-week.
