Le’Veon Bell was back with the Steelers for the first regular-season matchup after missing all of training camp in a contract dispute, but some fans weren't happy with his 47-yard performance.
On Tuesday, coach Mike Tomlin weighed in – rather passionately.
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"You can sing that Le'veon Bell camp song all you want,” Tomlin said in a press conference. “He's here. We're working. It's week two, we’re getting ready to play the Minnesota Vikings. I'm done with it.”
Tomlin admitted Bell's performance wasn't up to snuff, but he says it's not because he missed training camp.
Bell was limited to just 13 touches for 47 yards in the opener -- a far cry from the player that averaged more than 100 yards on the ground and 50 through the air per game last season. But Tomlin said game situations were mostly to blame.
“Like I mentioned, penalties and being behind the chains ruins your balance,” he said. “It puts you in predictable circumstances. It plays into the defense's favor. We've had some difficult running games against (Cleveland defensive coordinator Gregg) Williams in the past in instances when Le'Veon was in training camp, for example -- 2015 St. Louis Rams, for example. That's why I lose patience when we repeatedly cover the same thing."
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