Report: Le’Veon Bell facing suspension again

The Pittsburgh Steelers running back, who served a two-game suspension in 2015, reportedly failed to appear for a mandatory drug test.

Le’Veon Bell, the highly talented running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers, is reportedly facing another multiple game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance abuse and drug policy, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.

According to Graziano’s sources, Bell’s four-game suspension is “the result of a MISSED drug test, not a failed one,” and that the reason the suspension has yet to be announced by the NFL is because of an ongoing appeals process.

This would be Bell’s second suspension under the league’s drug policy in as many years, after being suspended for three games in 2015 following an August 2014 arrest for possession of marijuana and DUI. That suspension was reduced to just two games.

Bell averaged 4.7 yards per carry and racked up 1,361 yards for the Steelers in 2014, his only full year as a 16-game starter. In 2015, following his two-game suspension, Bell suffered a knee injury in Week 8 against the Cincinnati Bengals and was ruled out for the remainder of the regular season following surgery. Bell had been publicly declaring he would be ready by the beginning of Steelers training camp.

No date has been set for Bell’s appeal, though Graziano said it’s “expected” to be heard and a decision made before the start of the regular season.

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