Le’Veon Bell has heard enough hate.
The New York Jets running back took to Instagram on Sunday to deliver a public address against his social media haters. Bell put them on blast for criticizing his hobbies, including music and basketball, that extend beyond football.
“If somebody work at Target, do you think, when they work from 9 to 5, they go home and all you do is worry about putting [expletive] on the shelves? They trying to worry about what serial numbers coming up? No. You think [LeBron James] is waking up and he ain’t having no Taco Tuesdays? Ya’ll think he’s just hooping all day? Ya’ll think Beyonce’s wakes up singing all day?”
Bell’s battle is a tough one, as most fans have an unfair standard for their athletes, expecting them to be just that — and only that, an athlete. So Bell mocked that attitude by running down stairs — to continue the endless workout that fans seem to expect of him — at an airport to show how ridiculous it is for people to think that he doesn’t have a life outside football.
Athletes, like Bell and LeBron, can’t be athletes all the time. They should be free to pursue a full and fulfilling life, just like any other profession. And those interests will probably help them be better on the field or court.
Because of a contract dispute with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Bell took the 2018 season away from football, instead electing to enter free agency where he could lock up a deal that provided him with greater financial security. That’s what he got: a $52.5 million deal with New York.
But of course, his negotiation tactics were unique. And individualism rarely comes without criticism. Good news for Bell is that training camp begins shortly, with the Jets’ on-field practices starting on Aug. 18.
