Le'Veon Bell Odds: Steelers, Colts Favored as Landing Spots After Trade Deadline

On Sunday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers are listening to offers for running back Le'Veon Bell, who has continued his holdout into the 2018 season: 

Not surprisingly, on Monday oddsmakers had set odds for where Bell might finish the 2018 season, though the Steelers remain the favorites:

Bell, 26, has been seeking a long-term contract extension from the Steelers and hasn't received one, instead getting hit with the franchise tag in consecutive offseasons. And even if he's traded, he can't negotiate a new contract until the offseason because of the franchise tag rules.

Regardless, it appears unlikely he'll be rejoining the Steelers anytime soon. As Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com wrote, "Bell forfeits $852,941 per week—or one-seventeenth of the total tag number—each week he fails to show up, and it's become clear Bell has no intention of showing up soon. In the last week, Bell has been spotted on jet skis, on a yacht and at a nightclub for his album release."

Amongst the teams he could be traded to, the Colts come in with the best odds, and they'd be a logical destination for several reasons. For one, the team lacks a true feature back this offseason. For another, getting Andrew Luck another playmaker would be a logical decision.

Plus, according to Spotrac.com, the Colts currently have about $124.3 million of cap space for the 2019 season, the most in the NFL. In other words, they could afford to sign Bell to a lucrative extension. And they also have assets to deal, with two second-round picks in the 2019 draft due to their first-round swap with the New York Jets in this year's draft. 

Those assets could be what separates them from the other teams listed as potential favorites to land Bell by oddsmakers. The Jets have a need for an upgrade at running back and plenty of potential cap space next year ($106.5 million), though they obviously lack their own second-rounder this year. They do have an extra third-rounder following the Teddy Bridgewater trade, however. 

The Texans have cap space ($87.7 million), but with Lamar Miller and D'Onta Foreman—once he returns from the PUP list—at the position, they may not want to invest more assets at running back. Ditto for the Cleveland Browns, who have a pretty solid depth chart with Carlos Hyde, Nick Chubb and Duke Johnson Jr. all available. 

Hyde has started the year strongly, with 203 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Bell would undoubtedly be an upgrade, but the Browns may be better suited using their assets to address other positions of need in the future.