Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell has a history of injuries, so it makes sense he’d want to think about his future and consider a career as, uh, a rapper?
Under the name Juice, the 24-year-old Bell recently dropped his single, “Focus,” which condemns his haters who think — if you didn’t guess it by the title — he isn’t “focused” enough on rehabbing from his injury (a torn ACL) or his career. He also goes after people who think he’s still smoking marijuana after a suspension at the start of the 2015 season (“They think I need to refocus/They think that I’m smokin’”) and reveals his future contract negotiation hopes.
“Focus”https://t.co/2jfIsTgkHk pic.twitter.com/eNdY7bFKOH
— Le’Veon Bell (@L_Bell26) July 2, 2016
About 30 seconds into the song, Bell raps, “I’m at the top, and if not, I’m the closest… I’m a need 15 a year and they know this.”
Bell is entering the final year of his rookie contract, and he’s schedule to make just a little over $1.3 million, the 45th most-lucrative salary among current NFL running backs, despite being one of the best backs in the league.
Bell, along with Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, is at the heart of the Steelers. Since donning the black and gold in 2013, Bell, a patient back who powers the ground game, has averaged 4.3 yards per carry and has recorded 2,777 total rushing yards. He also has 1,389 receiving yards (an average of 9.1 yards a game). Combined, Bell has 22 touchdowns (19 rushing, three receiving). In 2014, Bell was the NFL’s second leading rusher with 1,361 yards and averaged 4.7 yards a carry.
So, perhaps, he thinks he’s worth of a $15 million per year contract at the start of the 2017-18 season.
I mean every lyric
— Le’Veon Bell (@L_Bell26) July 5, 2016
Unfortunately for Bell, only Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is making anywhere close to that ($14 million/year), and no other back is making more than $10 million.
Regardless, Bell has said he isn’t going anywhere — at least any time soon.
never https://t.co/BqsjANvCbf
— Le'Veon Bell (@L_Bell26) July 5, 2016
And, in “Focus,” he raps that he’s playing to make a name for himself, not just to make more money: “Be mad all you want ‘cuz I’m keepin’ it real/They want all my focus to be on the field/I keep all my focus on makin’ the meals … They should be ashamed ‘cuz they’re cheating the game/These athletes they playin’ it all for the fame/And I’m playin’ it to give my family a name … I play in hopes that one day I’m the best/I play for respect, I can’t settle for less.”
As his SoundCloud bio states, “I’m just a 1st Team All Pro Running Back not limiting to myself to anything.”
So don’t ask him if he’s focused — or he’ll probably make you listen to the song over and over (and over) again and you won’t be able to get it out of your head for hours (or, heaven forbid, days).
Listen to the full song here:
Image credit: Steelers.com
