Many members of the Pittsburgh Steelers were surprised to see Alejandro Villanueva emerge from the Soldier Field tunnel during Sunday's national anthem, according to a source.

Villanueva was the only member of the team to appear despite an expectation from Saturday's players-only meeting that the entire team would remain in the locker room.

He is a former Army Ranger who served terms in Afghanistan.

The left tackle was an important figure in Pittsburgh's protest planning because of his background. Players wanted to accommodate Villanueva, who expressed during their meeting that he didn't want to be singled out. Moving the protest off the field entirely was a way to keep solidarity without isolating an individual.

"That's where the confusion came in," the source of the anthem sequence.

Players discussed several potential methods of protest at that meeting, including holding hands on the sideline or laying hands on teammates who would stand or kneel. The team eventually moved their locker-room plan into the tunnel for time purposes.

"I don't want to go into that, but we support our guy Al. He feels he had to do it. This guy served our country, and we thank him for it," Cam Heyward said.

Le'Veon Bell has started the season slowly, but he's ready to turn small gains into large ones for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"It'll come," Bell said. "I'm due for an explosion play. It hasn't happened yet. I almost had like three today. I almost made one on a screen, a run. They made the play. We're two games in. We'lll watch the film and get ready for next week."

The Steelers will face the Chicago Bears in Week 3 as they look to improve to 3-0.

In two games, Bell has rushed 37 times for 119 yards (3.2 YPC) and has seven receptions for 19 yards. He has yet to reach the end zone.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have agreed upon a five-year, $61 million extension with Stephon Tuitt.

Tuitt is a versatile end who plays inside or out, base or nickel.

Tuitt has 11.5 sacks over 32 career starts spanning three seasons, and he gets consistent pressure.

Le'Veon Bell says he's preparing for as many as 30 touches per game in Week 1 when the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Cleveland Browns.

Bell waited to sign his franchise tender and didn't participate in training camp with the Steelers.

"I wanted to make sure I was prepared and fresh for the season," Bell said. "I don't want to go out there and jeopardize myself getting hurt in camp. Obviously I understand I'm on a one-year deal, so I have to go out there and prepare and play football. ... My rookie year I got hurt in camp, so I didn't even want to deal with it. I wanted to get ready for Game 1, the games that count and go out there and try to win a Super Bowl."

Le'Veon Bell has officially signed his $12.1 million franchise tender with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Bell averaged 157 yards from scrimmage per game last season.

Bell stayed away from the Steelers during the month of August after they failed to sign him to a long-term deal.

"I wanted to make sure I was prepared and fresh for the season," he said. "I don't want to go out there and jeopardize myself getting hurt in camp. Obviously I understand I'm on a one-year deal, so I have to go out there and prepare and play football. ... My rookie year I got hurt in camp, so I didn't even want to deal with it. I wanted to get ready for game one, the games that count and go out there and try to win a Super Bowl."