Le'Veon Bell Says That Frank Gore Arrives for Practice Each Day Ridiculously Early

New York Jets running back Le'Veon Bell is impressed by the work ethic of Frank Gore, including arriving to the facility at the crack of dawn for practice.

Future Hall of Fame running back Frank Gore isn’t just having a positive impact on New York Jets rookie La’Mical Perine but also on Le’Veon Bell. A two-time All-Pro running back, Bell marvels at Gore and what he brings to the Jets locker room.

Saying “I just watch his preparation his every day,” Bell said that he has been positively influenced by Gore, who signed with the Jets this offseason for his mentorship as much as for his ability on the field. Gore is third all-time in the NFL in rushing.

Bell arrives at the Jets facility at 7:00 A.M. By that time, he says, Gore’s gear is already picked up and nowhere to be seen.

“That means he’s already here so I don’t know what time he gets here, you know what I’m saying? And when I get here, he’s already prepped, he’s already ready for practice – we got two-and-a-half hours until practice is ready to go,” Bell said.

“Just little things like that, I watch, I learn. He’s 37 [years old] and still playing a high level of football. Every little thing that he does, I kind of watch it and I try to learn from it, whether I take it or not, it’s just good to watch and learn from it. I can’t really go into each and every detail of what he does, I’d be here all day. Just know he does a lot for me; I don’t know he knows or realizes the things he does but I just kind of watch and learn.”

The addition of Gore to the backfield has been anything but a contentious one for Bell. The prized signing of the Jets last offseason, Bell had a difficult first season in New York posting career lows in yards per carry and yards per reception.

The conventional wisdom around the Gore signing said that Bell might check-out mentally with the addition of such a high-profile running back. Instead, it appears that Bell has taken to Gore and the relationship between the two is relatively seamless.

On Wednesday, Bell said that his hamstring tightness is better and improved and that he is ready to go when the Jets open the season Week 1 at the Buffalo Bills.