Since getting the franchise tag placed on him for the second straight offseason, Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell was unable to work out a new long-term lucrative extension with the franchise.
Much of this has come through his firm stance on aiming to get paid well above the current annual salaries that top players at his position are garnering. During a recent interview with TMZ Sports, New Orleans Saints Pro Bowl running Alvin Kamara voiced that he believes that Bell's efforts will help benefit the rest of the crop of running backs in the league.
Article Continues Below“All I know is Le'Veon is about to change something up for us,” he says.
Although Bell was unable to work out a new deal, he is set to hit the free agent market next summer where he will be on the open market as the top player available at his position. There will also be plenty of suitors lining up for his services as he's still in the prime of his career that has several highly productive campaigns in front of him.
At the same time, this could put him in line to receive a contract that could set the standard for the type of deals that other star running backs in the league receive such as Los Angeles Rams' Todd Gurley, who is expected negotiate a new extension next summer prior to entering the fifth-year option of his rookie deal. This could easily have a domino effect on the rest of the NFL with the best of the crop securing bigger contracts.
This may be a situation that the Steelers have their focus fixated on resolving next summer, these comments from Kamara make it clear that the rest of the league will be keeping a close eye to see how things unfold.