Three Days Later, New York Jets head coach Adam Gase Still Regretting Playing an Injured Le'Veon Bell

Adam Gase still has regrets about how he handled Le’Veon Bell’s injury this past Sunday. The New York Jets head coach admitted on Wednesday that his star running back should never have gone back in the game.

Bell injured the hamstring in the second quarter of the Jets' 27-17 loss in Week 1 at the Buffalo Bills, drawing a holding penalty against the Bills on the play. He was inserted into the game again in the second half before being pulled out.

On Monday, Gase said he was optimistic that Bell could return quickly. The Jets placed Bell on Injured Reserve (IR) on Tuesday, meaning he could return to practice at the earliest in three weeks.

“It’s just the time frame. Like I said on Monday, I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt given the shape that he’s in,” Gase said on Wednesday in his virtual press conference.

“His ability to play through pain, I’ve seen it. The guy has a pretty high pain threshold. That was an ugly play. He tried to gut it out. Like I said, I wish I took him out at halftime. He’s a hard one to convince that’s the move. We just feel like giving him that time will be beneficial to him.”

It was a rough afternoon for Bell as it was for the entire Jets offense. All offseason, the talk was that Bell was not just in phenomenal shape but that the Jets offensive line would be improved, helping him to rebound from a difficult 2018 season, his first in New York.

On Sunday, Bell ran for 14 yards on six carries. He was effective in the passing game, however, with two catches for 32 yards.