Le'Veon Bell weighs in on the status of long-term contract talks with the Steelers

A year ago, Bell held out before signing his franchise tender

There were reports last summer that Le'Veon Bell turned down a five-year deal worth roughly $60 million from the Steelers and instead opted for the one-year, $12.1 million franchise tag. Though Bell never spoke in specifics about the contract, he did say he turned down the team's offers so as not to devalue the running back market.

And that history is a backdrop for what's about to unfold. Unless the two sides can come to terms, Bell could again be hit with the one-year franchise tag. This isn't ideal, at least from Bell's perspective, and the running back suggested he would hold out and might even retire.

But the Steelers and their fans got some good news on Wednesday.

"We are a lot closer than we were last year," Bell said from Orlando, where he's taking part in the Pro Bowl, via ESPN.com's Jeremy Fowler. "I'm happy and the Steelers are happy right now where we're at. Obviously we have to continue to get it done."

If Bell were tagged again, he'd make $14.5 million in 2018. For now, the running back is unclear if the Steelers might tag him in the coming weeks to keep him from becoming a free agent, and then use the next few months to hammer out a new long-term deal. Typically, teams and franchised players have until mid-July to reach an agreement before the terms of the one-year franchise tag go into effect.

"I want to make sure everything is good," Bell continued. "I'm not trying to play the same episode again. We need something new. ... Make everybody happy so everybody can come into the season and we don't have no distractions."

Bell was again one of the league's most dynamic players, rushing for 1,291 yards and 9 touchdowns as well as 655 receiving yards and another two scores. He ranked fifth in total value among all running backs, according to Football Outsiders' metrics. In three previous seasons, he's ranked No. 3, No. 5 and No. 5.

And while the Steelers' offense has other big-play threats -- Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster -- you can argue that Bell's versatility makes him the most valuable of the bunch. The organization surely knows this and we can't imagine they don't keep him in Pittsburgh.

As it stands, the only other running back under contract for the Steelers in 2018 is rookie James Connor, who suffered a knee injury in the Week 15 loss to the Patriots.