Steelers hope to deal Bell

Transition tag is the first step

The first day NFL teams can begin using the transition tag on players is Tuesday, and the Steelers appear ready to use the tag on Le’Veon Bell with the intention of hopefully trading their former All-Pro running back.

The Steelers have 15 days, or until March 5, to use the transition tag on Bell, and all indications are coach Mike Tomlin and general manager Kevin Colbert still intend to do that.

The transition tag, which is expected to have a value of approximately $9.5 million to $14.5 million for one season, pending arbitration, gives the Steelers a chance to match any offer Bell receives on the open market.

While the Steelers do not plan to match any offer and retain Bell, the idea of trading him is not as simple or risk-free as it might appear.

Even if the Steelers find a team willing to make a trade, they would have to get Bell to sign the transition tag before anything can happen. That would require them getting cooperation from Bell and his agent, Adisa Bakari, and that is highly unlikely given what has transpired the past two seasons.

They could also match an offer sheet Bell might receive from another team and then try to trade him, but the chances of the Steelers being able to afford to match an offer for a player of Bell’s caliber are slim.

Under the rules of the collective bargaining agreement, they cannot trade Bell for at least one year to a team that submits an offer sheet. The exception is if Bell would agree to the trade. Again, though, that would rely on Bell’s cooperation.

Also, if the Steelers receive an offer sheet for Bell and do not elect to match it, they would receive nothing in return.

Colbert said last year the Steelers would not rescind the franchise tag once they placed it on Bell, and they never did despite all the problems and drama that ensued.

If all else fails, though, the Steelers could rescind the transition tag and let Bell become a free agent. As long as they do that before Bell signs an offer sheet, they would at least be guaranteed getting something in return — a likely third-round compensatory pick in the 2020 draft.

That would appear to be their safest, and best, possibility.