Dec 31, 2014 4 min read

PITTSBURGH – Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell strode from one end of the team’s indoor practice facility to the other as his teammates worked out Wednesday.

He stood behind the line of scrimmage with his teammates and coaches, watching as they prepared to host the Baltimore Ravens Saturday at Heinz Field in an AFC Wildcard game.

He obviously wasn’t practicing, but the fact Bell could walk around and stand on the football field for two hours was a huge improvement. He could barely get from point A to point B Monday.

“Walking around, I feel good,” said Bell, who suffered a hyperextended knee last Sunday in a 27-17 victory over Cincinnati in the regular season finale. “Just a couple of days ago, I couldn’t do this. It feels good to just move around and not really have to think about it much.”

But Bell isn’t ready to speculate if he’ll be ready to play against the Ravens.

“I didn’t expect to be feeling this well this early,” the Pro Bowl running back said. “You just take it day by day and see how it goes.”

The Steelers (11-5) are preparing as if they will not have their MVP and the AFC’s leading rusher available when they play the Ravens (10-6). Head coach Mike Tomlin said he wouldn’t discount the 22-year-old making a recovery and returning to the lineup in just six days.

“I’d rather spend my time focusing on the what-ifs from a negative standpoint if he’s unavailable,” Tomlin said. “If he is available, that’s easy. We’ve done that 16 or 17 weeks already.”

The Steelers are prepared to go into the game against the Ravens with rookie Josh Harris as their No. 1 running back and fellow rookie Dri Archer and veteran Ben Tate as his backups. Tate was signed Tuesday.

“All week long, I’m going to try and do all of the things I need to do to show them, ‘OK, if we need to put him out there in certain situations, he will be OK with that,'” said Harris.

Bell was injured in the third quarter against the Bengals when Cincinnati safety Reggie Nelson, who had been run over a couple of times early in the game by Bell, came up and hit him low on the knee at the end of a 19-yard reception.

Bell, who somewhat reluctantly called Nelson’s hit legal, said he feared the worst.

“When it happened, so many thoughts went into my head,” said Bell, who was down on the field for more than a minute before hopping up and jogging to the sideline. “I just knew how it felt at the time. It was scary. It was more scary than anything. I was just glad when I got the MRI back that there weren’t any significant tears or anything.”

That was the good news. The MRI Monday revealed no structural damage in the knee and left the possibility he could play against the Ravens.

Bell has 2,215 total yards – setting a Steelers’ record – and also scored 11 touchdowns, eight rushing and three receiving. His 1,361 yards rushing led the AFC and he was second on the team with 83 receptions for 854 yards, both records for a Pittsburgh running back.

“I’m not going to rush it,” Bell said. “If I feel ready, I’m definitely going to try to get on the field and play. It’s a huge game. I’m definitely going to want to play if I’m able to play.

“I don’t want to play fearing my knee getting hurt. I want to be comfortable, not really thinking about cutting or jumping. I want to be able to do what I do and help this team win.”

Steelers Pro Bowl receiver Antonio Brown was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month for December and Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance last week against the Bengals. … Safety Troy Polamalu (knee) and cornerback Ike Taylor (shoulder/forearm) were full participants in practice Wednesday. … In addition to Bell, offensive tackle Mike Adams (illness) did not practice. … Nose tackle Steve McLendon (shoulder) and tight end Michael Palmer (groin) were limited.