The Pittsburgh Steelers have elected not to use a franchise or transition tag on Le'Veon Bell.

"Le'Veon is still a great player," Kevin Colbert said. "We can't afford to use any other type of tags. Le'Veon will be an unrestricted free agent at the start of the new league year."

The Steelers will receive a 2020 compensatory pick that could be worth as high as a third-round selection.

Bell declined to sign his franchise tender last year, leaving $14.5 million on the table and sitting out the entire season.

There was a battle brewing between the NFL and NFL Players Association over the value of a transition tag on Bell. Bell and the NFLPA would likely argue that the transition tag is close to $14.5 million based on the escalating value of tags, and the Steelers and the NFL would say it's closer to $9.5 million because Bell sat out.