Le’Veon Bell got his wish.
Two days after Bell indicated on Twitter that he wanted out, the Jets accommodated the running back. The team announced Tuesday night it is releasing Bell after failed attempts to trade him.
The release ends a rocky 19-month marriage between the two sides.
“After having conversations with Le’Veon and his agent and exploring potential trade options over the past couple of days, we have made the decision to release Le’Veon,” Jets GM Joe Douglas said in a statement. “The Jets organization appreciates Le’Veon’s efforts during his time here and we know he worked hard to make significant contributions to the team. We believe this decision is in the best interests of both parties and wish him future success.”
Bell, 28, was a disappointment since signing a four-year, $52.5 million contract with the Jets in March 2019. He rushed for 863 yards and three touchdowns in 17 games with the team, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry. He also had 69 catches for 500 yards and one touchdown.
The Jets will end up paying Bell $27.5 million.
After the Jets announced the move, Bell tweeted an emoji of hands together in prayer, meaning thank you.
The final straw came Sunday, when Bell took to Twitter after a loss to the Cardinals and liked several tweets criticizing how coach Adam Gase utilized him. He liked one tweet that said the Jets should trade him.
Sources said Bell and his agent conveyed their unhappiness to the Jets and the sides agreed to try to find a trade partner. The Jets gave permission to Adisa Bakari, Bell’s agent, to seek a trade and the team did the same, but found no takers. The Jets were willing to pay a portion of the $6 million remaining on his salary to facilitate the trade, but a sticking point for teams was the $8 million guaranteed for injury in 2021.
The injury guarantee for next year also factored into the Jets’ decision to release Bell now rather than continuing to try to trade him before the Nov. 3 trade deadline. They would be risking being on the hook for next year’s salary if Bell were injured. As it is now, he will count $15 million against this year’s cap and $4 million next year.
Sunday’s squabble was just the latest dustup between Bell and Gase. The partnership felt doomed from the start. Former GM Mike Maccagnan signed Bell over objections from Gase, who preferred to invest the money in other positions. Those objections became public after Maccagnan was fired in May 2019 and the disagreement over Bell was reported as one of the reasons for the rift between Gase and Maccagnan. Both Gase and Bell have repeatedly said there are no issues between them, but brushfires kept coming up.
Bell was unhappy after Sunday’s game, when he had 13 carries for 60 yards but only one catch. It was his first game after missing three with a hamstring injury. He refused to speak to reporters after the game on a Zoom call and then had his Twitter tantrum. Gase said he understood Bell’s frustration but wished he had come to him instead of turning to social media to express it.
This came after a similar training camp kerfuffle between the two after Bell was pulled by the trainers from a scrimmage and Gase told reporters it was because his hamstrings were tight. Bell went on Twitter and said his hamstrings were fine. The two had a meeting to talk through things, but it was just another indication of the lack of trust between the two.
With Bell gone, the Jets now can give more carries to rookie La’Mical Perine, who did not play any offensive snaps Sunday. It will be Perine and veteran Frank Gore carrying the load for the winless Jets now.
This move is the latest moment in a tumultuous season for the Jets. It began in the spring with the contract drama between the team and star safety Jamal Adams. That ended with the Jets trading Adams to Seattle just before training camp in exchange for a package that include two first-round picks.
A week later, linebacker C.J. Mosley, the highest-paid player on the team, opted out of the season due to COVID-19 concerns.
The Jets have lost their first five games and Gase is on the hot seat. Quarterback Sam Darnold did not play particularly well and then injured his shoulder two weeks ago against the Broncos and missed Sunday’s game.
Now, Bell, the highest-profile player on the team, is gone.