Saturday, June 27, 1998
The Bengals on Friday signed former Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety Myron Bell to a two-year contract. Terms were not disclosed.
Bell, 26, an unrestricted free agent, had played the past four seasons with the Steelers. He was in 16 games last season, including eight starts. He was fifth on the Steelers in tackles with 58 and had a sack, an interception and two fumble recoveries.
Bengals defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau was Bell's former coach in Pittsburgh.
With the Bengals, Bell is to compete with Sam Shade for the starting job at strong safety. Bell can also play free safety.
He was a fifth-round draft pick from Michigan State in 1994. He has played in 62 NFL games, including 21 starts.
"Coach LeBeau is every reason for me being here," Bell said. "He's a great guy to play for. He's using the same system we had with the Steelers, so I know what's going on."
He is the third former LeBeau-coached Steelers player to join the Bengals. Inside linebacker Jerry Olsavsky, 31, and defensive end Ray Seals, 33, have signed with Cincinnati as free agents during the off-season.
The Steelers ended attempts to re-sign Bell, who made $362,900 last season, when they signed former Bengals safety Bo Orlando last week.
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