Rooney Says Steelers Want to Get Deals Done with Roethlisberger and Bell

Steelers team president Art Rooney II told a small group of reporters Wednesday the team will explore extending quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s contract at some point and want to sign running back Le’Veon Bell to a long-term deal this offseason, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports.

Roethlisberger, 35, has expressed to the team that he wants to play beyond his current contract, which features two more years.

“We haven’t had a long conversation about that other than him saying he is interested in playing beyond his contract,” Rooney said. “That’s good news to me, and certainly his play this year makes you feel like he does have a few years left. All that is great in terms of the contract. We’ll address that at the right time. But bottom line is we’re excited that’s the way he feels and we’ll continue to work with him and hopefully get a couple more rings with him.”

Rooney said the Steelers have the “next several weeks” to reach a deal with Bell but stayed neutral on whether the team would apply the tag, which is worth around $14.5 million.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Rooney said.

Bell told ESPN at last month’s Pro Bowl that completing a deal before Feb. 20 — the first day that teams can designate franchise or transition tags — is “definitely a goal” for both parties.

“With every signing we do, we look at all the facts,” Rooney said about Bell’s deal. “The player on the other side is looking at the same things. The bottom line is, can you come together and have a meeting of the minds? That’s what we’ve got to work on. … I think the good news is both sides want to get something done here, and hopefully that will lead to us getting it done.”

Bell also said last month that he believes both parties are closer to a contract than last year, when he skipped all of training camp and played the season on a $12.1 million franchise tag.