The future is bright at One Jets Drive with Robert Saleh running the show, but it wasn’t too long ago that Florham Park was a hopeless place under Adam Gase’s watch.
Gase ran the Jets into the ground throughout his two years with the team, making New York the laughingstock of football for the majority of 2020. Le’Veon Bell was one of many who was part of the trainwreck for a year and a half before his unceremonious release midway through last season.
On Thursday, Bell took to social media to provide some insight into just how bad the Gase era was, taking shots at his former team in a series of tweets.
money wise, somewhat…other than that, hell no https://t.co/rBWrVAPxrX
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) May 27, 2021
lol the only difference with the steelers was they gave me opportunity… haven’t had that since I left, I probably need to play for a defensive minded head coach instead of these offensive minded guru’s … https://t.co/JAT50XUm23
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) May 27, 2021
I had more touches in 2017 for the steelers than I had my entire time with the jets… that’s what I mean by “opportunity” weirdo https://t.co/mT4fXogHqI
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) May 27, 2021
I don’t consider a “HB dive” on 3rd & short of 4th & short EVERY TIME is an opportunity…we line up & they callin out the play, that’s not opportunity, on top of the play being a dive…I can’t make sh*t shake with that
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) May 28, 2021
While Bell’s gripe with the way his time with the Jets went is somewhat warranted, there are some holes in his argument. Bell finished eighth in the NFL in touches with 311 in 2019. That does not play into his theory that he was not given enough opportunities to make plays, even if Gase’s playcalling was predictable.
Bell also flopped with the Chiefs after the Jets released him in October, rushing for just 254 yards and two touchdowns on 63 carries in nine games with Kansas City. Yardage was even tougher for Bell to come by after he left New York, indicating the 29-year-old has indeed lost a step — even if he isn’t willing to admit it.
Bell did plenty of good things off the field while he was with the Jets, but he will ultimately be remembered as a free agent signing Mike Maccagnan never should have made. Gase deserves nearly all the blame for New York’s recent failures, but Bell never did much to make himself part of the solution.
