Questions about whether or not Adam Gase wants the New York Jets to keep Le’Veon Bell are frustrating for all parties involved.
Le’Veon Bell was the big-splash signing the New York Jets made last offseason, but his first year under head coach Adam Gase was the least productive of his career.
Throughout the season, reports indicated that Gase was against signing the running back to a long-term deal and that the move was spearheaded by ousted general manager Mike Maccagnan. During a press conference on Monday, Gase grew frustrated with questions about whether or not he wants Bell back next season.
Adam Gase on whether he wants Le'Veon Bell back next season: "He's under contract for three more years…you can ask Joe tomorrow" pic.twitter.com/CHq0z0kFA4
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) December 30, 2019
“You can ask Joe [Douglas] tomorrow. You can ask Joe tomorrow. I’m not the personnel –I’m not in charge of personnel,” a defiant Gase said.
Cue Le’Veon Bell’s reaction:
https://t.co/csolpvucXt pic.twitter.com/RFNcgQLjq5
— Le'Veon Bell (@LeVeonBell) December 30, 2019
What a way to start the offseason, huh?
Before fans start gathering the torches and pitchforks to hunt down Gase, let’s take a deep breath. This is a 13-second clip from a much longer press conference and it’s very easy to take things out of context.
Gase has made it clear — on multiple occasions throughout this year — he wants Bell back and loves what he brings to the offense.
His comments today are being taken out of context. A line of questioning clearly got under his skin, which impacted his tone when asked this Q https://t.co/kdVRY68znx
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) December 30, 2019
I think Gase's short answer about Bell had more to do with who was asking the question than his feelings on Bell. #nyj
— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) December 30, 2019
Even with context added, Bell clearly feels some type of way about Gase’s answer. The good news is that they have all offseason long to patch things up together.
Making sure general manager Joe Douglas puts together a competent offensive line for Bell is far more important than a short clip in Gase’s final press conference of the season. The former All-Pro back can still be one of the best in football and a weapon for quarterback Sam Darnold in the future.
