Jerome Bettis urges Le'Veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers to come to agreement

Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis issued some strong words for both star running back Le'Veon Bell and the Pittsburgh Steelers as the two sides attempt to work out a long-term deal.

"Neither one of you are as good by yourself as you are together," Bettis said, via TMZ.com.

Bell is set to earn $14.5 million under the franchise tag. He has until the July 16 deadline to finalize a long-term contract.

The 26-year-old Bell, who has been hit with the franchise tag for the second year in a row, missed the majority of the Steelers' offseason last year. He said he is hoping to avoid a repeat of that scenario this summer.

"Le'Veon, you're not going to be as good going somewhere else because they're not going to have the offensive line, they're not going to have the quarterback, the receivers that they have in Pittsburgh," Bettis said. "You have a full complement around you that allows you to be as great as you want to be."

Bell ran for 1,291 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns last season while catching a personal-best 85 passes for 655 yards and two scores. He was third in the NFL in rushing yards and 10th in receptions.

The Steelers finished the 2017 campaign with a 13-3 mark before dropping a 45-42 decision to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC divisional round of the playoffs.

Bettis won a Super Bowl with the Steelers and also played for the then-St. Louis Rams. He retired as the NFL's fifth-best rusher with 13,662 yards and entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015.