PRO FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : RAIDERS : Nick Bell Making Little Progress
Nick Bell took the handoff and raced up the middle, only to suddenly slow and limp away.
It was only a practice play Thursday at the Raiders’ El Segundo training headquarters. But it was also Bell’s season in microcosm: two steps forward and one step back.
Bell had been designated the team’s starting tailback before the beginning of training camp. Yet, five weeks into the season, he has not played.
First, there was a hamstring injury sustained in the exhibition finale. With that finally healed, Bell seemed ready to return for Sunday’s game at the Coliseum against the New York Jets.
But Wednesday, he suffered an ankle injury that appears to have left him hobbled again. Tests have shown no structural damage.
“It feels fine,” Bell said of the ankle after Thursday’s practice. “I don’t know if he (Coach Art Shell) will play me Sunday, but I’ll be ready.”
Said Shell: “It’s been frustrating for him. It’s been frustrating for everybody.”
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