NFL Running Back Le’Veon Bell, who was recently a free agent until Tampa Bay Buccaneers made him an offer, made headlines in the combat sports community for getting involved in a Twitter tussle with Tyron Woodley, in the heels of calling out Jake Paul for a fight. Little did many know, Bell was actually thinking for a complete switch to professional boxing but decided to remain on the pitch only after the defending champions made him an offer.
I was gonna start boxing and focusing on boxing: Le’Veon Bell
A 2013 2nd round draft pick, Le’Veon Bell made his NFL debut with the Pittsburgh Steelers and remained with them for six years until switching to the New York Jets in 2019. The next year, Bell joined the Kansas City Chiefs in October and in September this year, he joined Baltimore Ravens but was released last month.
In the wake of his release from the Ravens, Bell had the notion that his NFL career might have come to an end, and the 29-year-old even considered switching the helmet with a pair of gloves and getting into boxing, until the Buccaneers, who were seeking an RB, picked Bell up on 22nd December.
“I’m not even gonna lie — I got to the point where I had thought about kinda calling it quits, just ’cause of the fact that it wasn’t working out for me the last couple spots I’ve been at,” Bell said in an interview with ESPN, “this was like literally the only spot that I felt like made me want to play football and go out there and be excited to play. This was like literally the only place that could have called me and got me to really go play. I was gonna start boxing and focusing on boxing.”
Prior to the offer from the Bucs, Bell took to Twitter to call out YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul to fight, in the wake of Pauls’ rematch with Tyron Woodley in which “The Problem Child” had knocked out the former UFC welterweight champion in the sixth round. Bell had even engaged in a lengthy verbal clash with Woodley after telling Paul that he should stop fighting people “who can’t box.”
“It’s one of the worst feelings in the world, honestly,” Bell worded his days prior to the call from Buccaneers, “Just knowing what I can do, how much I do got left, and the game that I love and playing my whole life — it’s tough when it’s really not going the way you envision it.”
Highlights:
- NFL Running Back Le’Veon Bell had decided to switch to professional boxing before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offered him a contract
- Bell became a free agent after the Baltimore Ravens released him in November
- The 29-year-old called out Jake Paul to a boxing match and was even engaged in a heated Twitter tussle with Tyron Woodley
