Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell may miss Saturday's Wild Card game against the Baltimore Ravens due to a knee injury. As a result, the Steelers are reportedly hosting free agent running back Ben Tate for a visit today and ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the team is likely to sign him if all goes well.
This season has not gone well for Tate, who was seen as a potential breakout candidate after leaving his backup duties with the Houston Texans to become the Cleveland Browns lead back this season. However, Tate was slowed by injuries early on in the season before eventually being surpassed on the depth chart by rookie rushers Isaiah Crowell and Terrance West. Cleveland released Tate back in November and he was subsequently signed by the Minnesota Vikings but did not receive any carries. The Vikings released Tate last week.
The 26-year-old finished this season with just 371 rushing yards on 119 carries (3.1 yards per rush). Tate rushed for 1,992 yards on 421 carries (4.6 yards per carry) with the Texans.
Bell suffered a hyperextended knee in Pittsburgh's regular season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals and is currently listed as questionable for the upcoming round one matchup. If Bell, who finished second in the NFL in rushing with 1,361 yards, cannot go on Saturday then Tate would likely split carries with third-round draft pick rookie Dri Archer. That's not an ideal scenario, as no other back besides Bell on the Steelers roster has had more than 10 carries this season.