It was the 2020 season, and Le’Veon Bell started his second year with the New York Jets, only to lose Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills. He had only eight touches that game, after a disappointing first season in New York. That game triggered a domino effect that ultimately ended his time in New York.

Only a year earlier, in his Jets debut season, Bell endured something he was rarely used to: playing out meaningless late-season games. Gang Green finished 7-9 in 2019 and was way out of playoff contention. That made Bell decide that his time with the organization was over.

“Game one coach gave me like nine touches or something. I instantly, right after that game, I went upstairs,” Bell said on the Ball in the Family podcast on August 25. “It was quiet, though. I ain’t making a big media ruckus. I went upstairs, talked to GM. I’m like, I might need to get traded. Because we lost too. It’s different if we win. I ain’t touching the ball. But I already sat a whole year; I came here. I, number one free agent, came here. You’re not giving me the ball. And we’re losing. What’s the problem? You got a problem with me? Then get me out of here so I can just go about my career.”

Bell was drafted in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He spent four strong seasons with the franchise, but things didn’t end well. The Pro Bowler decided not to play his second year on a franchise tag and chose to sit out the entire 2018 season, seeking a long-term deal.

Then he signed a four-year, $52.5 million deal with the Jets, only to ask for a trade in the second year of the deal. Bell explained that when he signed, the whole organization had an overhaul. The Jets just hired a new head coach, Adam Gase, and a new general manager, Joe Douglas, who had plans for Bell that were different from what he expected.

“They gonna run an offense through me. We gonna be straight. Nah, that ain’t what happened. Coach had a whole different mindset,” Bell said on the same podcast. “The Jets as an organization, they need some help. But my teammates and everything that was there, they were cool…Just the organization overall. Nah, f*** them.”

For Bell, when he left the Steelers, his career trajectory changed completely. A running back who had three Pro Bowls in four years, two First Team All-Pro selections and two Second Team All-Pro selections, and who led the league in scrimmage touches with 406 in 2017, went to being passed on from one team to the other.

When he asked for a trade, the Jets tried to look for an option but eventually released him after the second game of the 2020 season. Bell signed with the Kansas City Chiefs for a Super Bowl run. The team made it to the big game, only to lose to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Bell walked into free agency in 2021 and publicly declared he would rather retire than play for Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. It was not until September that year that the Baltimore Ravens came calling, because their running back depth had faltered due to injuries.

The Ravens signed him to the practice squad in September that year, only to waive him two months later. His final stop was with the Buccaneers in 2021.

Looking back, his decision to leave the Steelers and stage the most historic holdout in the league turned out to be a mistake for his career.

“I never apologized to the fans for really sitting out — or leaving the Steelers,” Bell said in a video posted on social media in 2023. “I never apologized. I’m gonna say I apologize for leaving the best damn fans there is in this damn world. I shouldn’t have left. I apologize. That’s my fault. That’s on me.”

Bell has never officially hung up his cleats. He shifted his focus away from football ahead of the 2022 season to pursue a career in boxing. However, his story in the NFL isn’t completely finished. He plans to eventually sign a one-day contract to retire as a Steeler and hopes to suit up for some preseason action before doing so.