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Rumor: Leveon Bell skipped a drug test? (4 Viewers)

Bayhawks said:
Doesn't matter; games where he doesn't play are games where your FF #1 RB doesn't get points for you.

You, yourself stated that "part of being the best is being lucky enough to stay healthy."  The exact same sentiment applies to being lucky enough to avoid legal drama.  In the 3 years Bell has been in the NFL, he has been "lucky" enough to play in more games than Peterson, while scoring more fantasy points.

Anyway, to your original point about the Steelers giving more touches to Williams; that's not how they operate.  In Bell's career in Pittsburgh, he has gotten 77% of the RB touches in games he has played.  That includes 79% in his rookie year (before he was "established" as a bona-fide stud NFL RB); getting 77% of the touches the week after he was knocked unconscious in a game against the Ravens his rookie year; and receiving 84% of the touches after his two-game suspension to start last year, during which DeAngelo Williams was 2nd in the league in rushes AND rushing yards.  

The Steelers have shown no indication (past practice, nor coaches comments) that they will limit Bell's workload, either because they are worried about his injury history (see his 1st game as a rookie, coming off an injury, before the bye-earlier than expected where he got 80% of the RB touches AND his game after the concussion) or because of a capable/excellent backup (see split with Blount in 2014 AND split with DWill in games 3-8 from 2015).  You can think they will limit his touches, but there is no basis for that belief. 
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77% of the touches sounds about right, which would give 20+ to Williams (unless a 3rd back nabs a few touches here and there). I could see Bell getting 25 touches or so a game, while Williams gets 7-9, when averaged out over a span of games (since I see there being games where Williams hardly gets on the field and others where game situations see him getting 10+). That is kind of what I have said all along, in so many words. 

Milkman said:
Yeah and when Williams spelled Bell in those games he was garbage. What's your point? You think Williams is better than Bell? Do you honestly think that? If you're going to lower Bell's value over things like knee injuries where his knee was bent backwards by another player you have you lower Peterson's value on the chance he could beat his children again. I mean I understand the risk involved with Bell's injury past but Peterson has a lot of miles and is pretty old. I don't see AP as a significantly less injury risk.

Anyway back on topic because I know you're not saying Peterson is better at this stage in his career in the real NFL or in FF. If you think Williams is going to steal a ton of work from Bell I'd have to say after viewing past usage rates I disagree completely and I'm not worried in the slightest about Bell's usage going forward. The other concerns you mentioned in that post were legit though and need to be cooked into his price.
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Have you actually ready my posts? I have not once said that Williams is better than Bell or that he was going to steal a ton of his work.  All I have done is pointed out that he was more productive last year from a "per touches" standpoint and has likely earned himself more touches this year when both are healthy, while acknowledging that Bell is still the man who will get the lion's share of the touches. 

 
Ghost Rider said:
77% of the touches sounds about right, which would give 20+ to Williams (unless a 3rd back nabs a few touches here and there). I could see Bell getting 25 touches or so a game, while Williams gets 7-9, when averaged out over a span of games (since I see there being games where Williams hardly gets on the field and others where game situations see him getting 10+). That is kind of what I have said all along, in so many words. 
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I'm going to assume you meant Bell where Williams is underlined.  However, you go on to say you see Bell getting "25 touches or so a game."  That's 400 touches in 16 games.  That's more than he has ever received & 50 more than any RB received last year; the 77% touch rate for Bell that you say "sounds about right" would be higher than Peterson, Martin, Freeman, etc had last year.  Furthermore, Bell has averaged 23 touches/game in his career, so "25 touches or so a game" would actually be an increase in his workload. 

 
Ghost Rider said:
77% of the touches sounds about right, which would give 20+ to Williams (unless a 3rd back nabs a few touches here and there). I could see Bell getting 25 touches or so a game, while Williams gets 7-9, when averaged out over a span of games (since I see there being games where Williams hardly gets on the field and others where game situations see him getting 10+). That is kind of what I have said all along, in so many words. 

Have you actually ready my posts? I have not once said that Williams is better than Bell or that he was going to steal a ton of his work.  All I have done is pointed out that he was more productive last year from a "per touches" standpoint and has likely earned himself more touches this year when both are healthy, while acknowledging that Bell is still the man who will get the lion's share of the touches. 
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The touches Williams gets will not have much of an adverse affect on Bell. He got 10% of the touches last year if it increases to 20% Bell will still be a stud and Williams is in on almost 0% of the 3rd downs when both are healthy so Bells insane floor is untouched. 

 
Wow--wth is going on with the Steelers?   So we now have a situation where a top 3-5 fantasy qb, and a top 3 fantasy RB  are both going to miss approximately 30% of the fantasy season.   Little bit of a buzz kill for sure. 

 
JaxBill said:
Three game suspension reduced to 2 games.
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And that was technically under the old drug policy.  This missed test would fall under the new policy, which is less stringent, AFIK. 

If it was a missed test, how stupid can you be?  You know the deal-you're either stupid to miss the test, or you're stupid to have drugs in your system to make you choose to miss the test.

 
jvdesigns2002 said:
Wow--wth is going on with the Steelers?   So we now have a situation where a top 3-5 fantasy qb, and a top 3 fantasy RB  are both going to miss approximately 30% of the fantasy season.   Little bit of a buzz kill for sure. 
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I don't know if Brady was top 3-5 this year.  Some people had Bell outside of their top-3 as well (although I disagree with that-or I did).

 
georg013 said:
Bell lied????
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Le'Veon Bell denied a "rumor" he skipped a drug test, which would result in a "failed" test.
Pittsburgh radio personality Mark Madden started the rumor earlier on Tuesday, reporting Bell skipped a drug test and is facing another suspension. "I haven't missed any drug tests, failed any drug tests," Bell said. "I am fine." We'll put this one to bed unless it needs to be revisited. Bell served a two-game suspension to start last season.

 
Source: Mark Kaboly on Twitter
Jun 14 - 10:40 PM


 
Godsbrother said:
Hate to say it but it looks like loudmouth Madden was right.   What a dope Bell is ...
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Unless Graziano is using the same "source"?  It's weird that Schefty doesn't have a line on this.  Or Fowler, the guy that actually covers the Steelers.  Again it's everyone quoting one person as opposed to numerous reports.

I'd wait and see what is officially stated first.

 
steelers1080 said:
Unless Graziano is using the same "source"?  It's weird that Schefty doesn't have a line on this.  Or Fowler, the guy that actually covers the Steelers.  Again it's everyone quoting one person as opposed to numerous reports.

I'd wait and see what is officially stated first.
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I believe that Schefter also had a tweet this morning.

 
Go puff another blunt with Snoop and spit some dope lyrics, you @#$%ing jerkoff.

All I wanted to see was what this offense would look like with Ben under center, Bell in the backfield, and Brown and Bryant split wide.  Could have been something really fun to watch.  Steelers fans have to swallow this pill, but all NFL fans suffer as a result of these two boneheads.

 
Well if there is a bright side it's not like the Steelers aren't used to playing without Bell.   Between injuries and suspensions the guy is rarely on the field.

 
Godsbrother said:
Well if there is a bright side it's not like the Steelers aren't used to playing without Bell.   Between injuries and suspensions the guy is rarely on the field.
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They'll still be top offense no matter what.  Now if you lose Brown then things get dicey. 

 
jvdesigns2002 said:
Brady was qb2 last season.   I see no reason to drop him out of the top 5 arbitrarily.  I didn't see some sort of huge drop off or anything last season.   

http://www.fftoday.com/stats/playerstats.php
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And D Freeman was RB1, D Baldwin was WR7, Gary Barnridge was TE3 last year.  That doesn't mean they are going to finish there this season. 

As far as not seeing a huge drop off, what do you call 8.5 FF points/game?  1st 8 games of last year, TB averaged 29.4 ffppg; over the last 8, he averaged 20.4.  He went from the #1 QB during the 1st 1/2 of 2015 to the #12 over the 2nd 1/2.  I'd call that a drop off.

For 2016, I'd have Cam, Rodgers, Wilson, and Luck ahead of him, definitely, & I could see putting one of Roethlisberger or Brees ahead of him. 

Anyway, that isn't the point of the thread.  You're free to call Brady a top 3-5 QB.  Sorry for the hijak.

 
Godsbrother said:
Well if there is a bright side it's not like the Steelers aren't used to playing without Bell.   Between injuries and suspensions the guy is rarely on the field.
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True; the other "bright side" is that it gives Bell more time to make sure he's fully healthy, reduces some wear and tear early (hopefully, he'll be stronger later) & (from a ff pov), the 1st 4 games were a pretty tough part of Pitt's schedule.  It's not like he's missing 4 cream-puff matchups.

 
Grigs Allmoon said:
Didn't he already have a 4 game suspension? I thought the next one was 8 or 16...
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I had posted a few up from this saying it was wrong to whoever said he was facing a long suspension if he failed another test. I assumed it would be 4 games if he went down after I reviewed the drug policy. I think if he fails again it's 10 games.

 
Bayhawks said:
True; the other "bright side" is that it gives Bell more time to make sure he's fully healthy, reduces some wear and tear early (hopefully, he'll be stronger later) & (from a ff pov), the 1st 4 games were a pretty tough part of Pitt's schedule.  It's not like he's missing 4 cream-puff matchups.
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That and if Steelers want to keep him after this season this should help them keep him for less pay.

 
Evilgrin 72 said:
Go puff another blunt with Snoop and spit some dope lyrics, you @#$%ing jerkoff.

All I wanted to see was what this offense would look like with Ben under center, Bell in the backfield, and Brown and Bryant split wide.  Could have been something really fun to watch.  Steelers fans have to swallow this pill, but all NFL fans suffer as a result of these two boneheads.
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You get to see it. Just have to wait and extra month.

 
I personally think alcohol is worse than weed.  I've never heard of someone on weed driving on the wrong side of the road and hit a school bus and kill 27 people.  He might miss his exit however.

 
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menobrown said:
I had posted a few up from this saying it was wrong to whoever said he was facing a long suspension if he failed another test. I assumed it would be 4 games if he went down after I reviewed the drug policy. I think if he fails again it's 10 games.
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I always thought a missed test counted the same as a positive and I THOUGHT that a subsequent suspension carried more like 8 games or something but I'm sure someone around here knows the dividing line on why this is only 4 games. 

So are you saying if he fails again AFTER TODAY's announcement, its is then 10 games? 

At any rate, it changes his value as a dynasty owned player. He is slowly creeping into Blackmon/Gordon risk zones. Top flight FF player who you have to hold your breath on when you check the news. 

 
Shutout said:
I always thought a missed test counted the same as a positive and I THOUGHT that a subsequent suspension carried more like 8 games or something but I'm sure someone around here knows the dividing line on why this is only 4 games. 

So are you saying if he fails again AFTER TODAY's announcement, its is then 10 games? 

At any rate, it changes his value as a dynasty owned player. He is slowly creeping into Blackmon/Gordon risk zones. Top flight FF player who you have to hold your breath on when you check the news. 
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New policy last offseason made the punishment for weed violations less severe.  It's no longer 4, then 16 games.  Also, his previous punishment was for a drug-related DWI, not failure of an NFL-issued test, so there is/was a technicality there.  His DWI got him into the random drug-testing (rather than once/year), but I don't think it counted as a suspension under the policy?  Or something along thohse lines.

 
Bayhawks said:
New policy last offseason made the punishment for weed violations less severe.  It's no longer 4, then 16 games.  Also, his previous punishment was for a drug-related DWI, not failure of an NFL-issued test, so there is/was a technicality there.  His DWI got him into the random drug-testing (rather than once/year), but I don't think it counted as a suspension under the policy?  Or something along thohse lines.
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Wonder if the DWI related one from prior is considered conduct policy instead of substance abuse. I think there was some distinction between those two and how it could impact suspensions.  It is interesting to know for dynasty value, etc, but I guess the real issue is the guy needs to get it together.  A lot of opportunity is skirting by.

 
Shutout said:
Wonder if the DWI related one from prior is considered conduct policy instead of substance abuse. I think there was some distinction between those two and how it could impact suspensions.  It is interesting to know for dynasty value, etc, but I guess the real issue is the guy needs to get it together.  A lot of opportunity is skirting by.
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That sounds right; I remember wondering why it was 3 games instead of 4 (which was the norm for a 1st failed test the public became aware of), or no suspension (1st failed test used to quietly enter you into the testing program, but wasn't made public & didn't result in a suspension.  Read up on it then, but it's been awhile.

Under the new policy, the 3rd failed test results in a 4 game fine (missed test still equals failed test, I believe), & 4th failed test = 4 game suspension.  So, somehow, we have Bell at this point in the program.  Whether he failed 3 previous tests, or the DWI bumped him up, I don't know.  In any event, the next failed/missed test equals a 10 game suspension, according to this.

 
What a joke. Seriously, a missed test gets you the same suspension as a failed test? Just have him come in and pee and be done with it. 

 
Shutout said:
I always thought a missed test counted the same as a positive and I THOUGHT that a subsequent suspension carried more like 8 games or something but I'm sure someone around here knows the dividing line on why this is only 4 games. 

So are you saying if he fails again AFTER TODAY's announcement, its is then 10 games? 

At any rate, it changes his value as a dynasty owned player. He is slowly creeping into Blackmon/Gordon risk zones. Top flight FF player who you have to hold your breath on when you check the news. 
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His situation was a little different with the DWI/pot combo and I think his instance went down right when policy was being overhauled.

First failed marijuana test is 2 games and you enter stage 2. (remember he was initially suspended 3 and got it reduced to 2 because they were trying to suspend for DWI and marijuana).

In stage 2 your first failed test is either a 4 game fine or 4 game suspension and 6 games if you previously failed a stage 2 test. This is where it gets confusing because he had not failed a previous stage 2 test, he just moved right into it when he got busted. So since this was his first failed test in stage 2 he gets 4 games and not 6.

I assume he has now moved to stage 3 and if he fails a marijuana test in stage 3 he gets 10 games(you get season for other stuff but marijuana is a bit more relaxed). If he was somehow still in stage 2 and failed a second drug test in stage 2 he'd get 6 games but I think he is now moved to stage 3 so long story short if he fails another marijuana test he gets 10 games max, not the season.

Josh Gordon wishes they had this policy a few years ago.

 
mightyeskimo said:
What a joke. Seriously, a missed test gets you the same suspension as a failed test? Just have him come in and pee and be done with it. 
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It's because if you KNEW you were dirty, you could manipulate your test window and buy time. I think it is fair. I have seen people get penalized from it at my work when I thought "man, that sucks and is just terrible luck" but I have also seen the scenario where I thought "Yeah, that's just a person trying to dodge the inevitable."

 
mightyeskimo said:
What a joke. Seriously, a missed test gets you the same suspension as a failed test? Just have him come in and pee and be done with it. 
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A missed test is actually worse than a failed test in some cases. I mentioned that if Bell fails another marijuana test he gets 10 games but the rules state if you don't comply with the testing you get the whole season. I believe this is why Martavis skipped over 10 game and went straight to season. The only other expanations would be he failed for drug other than marijuana.

 
bump Fitzgerald Toussaint

in all seriousness, I am so sick of these idiotic players. I mean, "you stay away from these certain things and we will pay you millions of dollars" is it really that hard??? Follow the rules for 5-7 years and live the rest of your life how you want. Beyond stupid.

 
for fantasy purposes, 4 games arent that big of a deal unless bell is literally your only halfway viable point scorer at RB, before byes you should be able to soften that blow

 
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