Bell's trainer calls report of significant weight gain 'laughable'

Le'Veon Bell's trainer criticized a report Thursday that the former All-Pro running back put on 35 pounds during his season of inactivity.

"It's so untrue it's laughable and ridiculous," Pete Bommarito told Jason Cole and Matt Verderam of FanSided. "He has stuck to the plan and stayed in shape all year. It's ridiculous. Where does this stuff come from? Who says this? Nobody asked me."

The report surfaced Wednesday and came from Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. It claimed that "word on the street" was Bell had ballooned to 260 pounds at one point during his year away from the gridiron, and that the New York Jets are concerned about the type of shape he's in entering free agency.

The Jets have long been linked to the 27-year-old, who was twice a first-team All-Pro with the Steelers.

Bell sat out the entire 2018 season after failing to strike a long-term deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The team had used its franchise tag on him for the second consecutive year.