Steelers Get a Break, Bell’s Injury Will Reportedly Not Require Surgery

Bell’s injury appears to be less severe than Spaeth’s. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

I guess the rumors were true that Le’Veon Bell’s foot injury was not as significant as Matt Spaeth’s.

In fact, Bell’s mid-foot sprain will not require surgery according to Gerry Dulac and Ray Fittipaldo of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Dulac and Fittipaldo also reported that Pittsburgh’s head coach is also apparently “optimistic and encouraged” about how well Bell’s foot has responded since he sustained the injury during Pittsburgh’s loss on Monday night to Washington.

While the loss of Bell is an enormous blow to the Steelers’ running game, it is nevertheless promising to hear that the rookie’s injury is not as severe as many people believed it was after it happened.  Even with the positive news though, the rookie will still have to be sidelined while he recovers from his mid-foot sprain.

With Bell hobbled, the Steelers will probably have to employ a “running back by committee” strategy unless Jonathan Dwyer, Isaac Redman, or LaRod Stephens-Howling can win a bulk of the carries outright.  Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that the Steelers’ current running back corps and offensive line do not exactly strike fear into many, if any, of their opponents around the league right now.  Plus, I think that we all remember how the “running back by committee” strategy worked last fall.

For now though, I’ll view the running back’s diagnosis and Tomlin’s attitude about the injury as pluses during an otherwise “minus-filled” preseason for Pittsburgh.

Players Stats & Info. Provided By: ESPN.com, Steelers.com, and Pro Football Reference

Follow me on Twitter: @DominicDiTolla

Follow & Like “NPC” on Facebook: Nice Pick, Cowher