Le’Veon Bell disputes Jets’ report about hamstring injury

Le’Veon Bell has disputed a report from the Jets about a potential injury.

The relationship between Le’Veon Bell and New York Jets’ head coach Adam Gase has never been smooth, but Bell has indicated he is trying to pick his coach’s brain a lot this summer. The Jets, who saw Bell have a disappointing debut last season, clearly need a lot out of Bell if they hope to win this season.

Things took a bizarre turn after today’s scrimmage, where Bell and Frank Gore alternated work in the backfield before Gore finished the session. Gase told the media after the scrimmage that Bell was removed as a precaution due to hamstring tightness, a claim that the running back disputed on Twitter immediately after the news broke.

How weird is that LeVeon Bell is disputing an injury report from the Jets?

It is certainly odd for a player to vehemently dispute an injury claim shortly after the coach says that was the reason for his removal from practice. This incident will surely start the rumor mill up again about Gase’s interest in having Bell on the team, especially after reports leaked last season that Gase was not a fan of signing Bell before being overruled by then-GM Mike Maccagnan.

It also seems like an odd stance for Gase, who is on a clear hot seat after a disappointing first year in New York, to essentially make up an injury to justify removing his best offensive weapon from practice. Gase’s past does include feuds with players like Jarvis Landry and his reputation as an offensive guru, largely built on his days as Peyton Manning’s offensive coordinator in Denver, has taken a hit as players like Ryan Tannehill, Kenyan Drake and DeVante Parker thrived last season after floundering under Gase’s coaching.

This is also an important year for Bell, who the Jets could move on from after the season with minimal salary cap repercussions, so this reaction could be a sign he feels that Gase is hurting his chances of succeeding. The Jets reportedly shopped Bell at last season’s trade deadline without a ton of interest so this could be worth monitoring over the coming weeks.