NFL insider says Eagles “have been mulling the potential of a Le’Veon Bell trade for a while now”

The “Le’Veon Bell to the Philadelphia Eagles” rumors are not dying down.

It began with NFL insider Jason La Canfora calling the Eagles a “sleeper team” to acquire the Pittsburgh Steelers running back. Then he reported the Eagles have “interest” in Bell. The latest from La Canfora is that the Eagles “have been mulling the potential of a Bell trade for a while now.” From his CBS column:

And if I am the Eagles, who have been mulling the potential of a Bell trade for a while now, nothing I saw last Sunday [against the Titans] would curb my interest. In fact, it would only heighten my desire to acquire a player of this impact given the way the defending Super Bowl champions have limped through the first quarter of the season. A year ago they stirred things up and dealt for Jay Ajayi; a Bell trade midseason this year could boost them even further.

Watching Carson Wentz get tossed around and toppled and crunched on play after play couldn’t possibly sit well with the Eagles’ brass. They have struggled to sustain much on offense – whether it was Wentz or Nick Foles under center – the offensive line looks shaky and the run game has been very hit or miss. Ajayi is a pending free agent dealing with a back issue, Alshon Jeffery was great in his return from injury – but staying healthy has long been a problem for him – and they are always ready and eager to shake things up and make bold moves.

In addition to all of this, Bell told ESPN earlier this week that he believes the Eagles are one of the teams that have interest in acquiring him.

I’ve already explained why the Eagles acquiring Bell could be complicated. For that reason, I can’t just easily expect the trade to happen.

But it’s hard to ignore La Canfora continually insisting that the Eagles are in on Bell. And with Howie Roseman (whom La Canfora is well-connected to) being an aggressive executive, I wouldn’t put it past him to be able to pull it off. We’ll see.

It must be noted that Bell can’t be traded until he signs his franchise tender. The Eagles have until 4:00 PM on October 30 to make a deal before the NFL trade deadline expires.