PITTSBURGH -- The NFL on Friday suspended Pittsburgh Steelers running back LeVeon Bell for the first three games of the season for missing multiple drug tests, a violation of the leagues substance abuse policy.Bell initially faced a four-game suspension, but it was reduced to three games following an appeal to the league. Bell offered an apology in an Instagram post shortly after the suspension was announced, a post he later deleted.Im not the perfect person, Bell said in the post. Im not going to say I act like a perfect person. I make mistakes. I want to apologize for everything I put you guys through the last couple years. Its been a frustrating run for you. Its been a frustrating run for me.This is the second time Bell has faced discipline from the league. He sat out the first two games of the 2015 season as punishment for his arrest in August 2014 on DUI and marijuana possession charges following a traffic stop. Bell was originally suspended three games before it was reduced on appeal.Bell will be eligible to return to the active roster Sept. 26, before the teams Week 4 home game against Kansas City. He will miss the season opener at Washington, the first home game against Cincinnati and the next game at Philadelphia.We are disappointed LeVeon Bell has been suspended three games to start the 2016 season, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said in a statement.We will continue to support LeVeon, but we acknowledge this mistake has put the team in an unfortunate position. We will continue to work with LeVeon to help him eliminate distractions in his life so he can reach his full potential as a member of our community as well as a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers.Bell said in the post he never purposefully missed or failed any drug test.They tried to test me in December and January and I missed those tests, Bell said. I couldnt get to the facility and get tested. They couldnt come to me and get tested. Thats on me. I put blame on myself.Bell added that he was supposed to get tested again in April and overslept.I ended up missing the test, Bell said. I was sleeping and thats on me. I cant blame anybody else for missing my test. I just want everybody to understand I never tried to purposefully avoid or evade any test.The 24-year-old All-Pro running back is entering the final season of his rookie contract.Bell finished second in the league with 1,361 yards rushing and 2,215 all-purpose rushing and receiving yards in 2014. He rushed for 556 yards and three touchdowns and caught 24 passes for 136 yards in 2015 before tearing the MCL and PCL in his right knee when Cincinnati linebacker Vontaze Burfict dragged him to the ground in November.Bell hasnt played in a preseason game, but has fully participated in training camp practices, showing the ability to take hits and sharply cut on his injured knee. Bell will be able to participate in training camp practices and the final two preseason games before the suspension begins.Pittsburgh finished third in total yards and fourth in scoring in 2015 while going 11-7 and losing to Denver in the AFC divisional round. The Steelers are already without wide receiver Martavis Bryant, who will miss the entire season after he was suspended in March for a second violation of the leagues substance abuse policy.Veteran DeAngelo Williams will fill in as the teams starting running back with Bell out of the lineup.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL Clyde Lee Jersey . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. Stitched Warriors Jerseys . James, who turned 29 on Monday, injured his groin Friday during the Heats overtime loss at Sacramento. 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Self was acquired from the Buffalo Bandits in a trade for Alex Hill midway through last season, and made his debut in Rochester on March 16, 2013.BRUSSELS, Belgium -- The head of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency on Friday lashed out at the UCI world cycling federation for failing to take any decisive action to clean up the sport since the Lance Armstrong doping scandal. Travis Tygart said after meeting with European Union sports officials that "all those who cherish the Olympic values, particularly fair play and a level playing field, deserve more." After the discussions, which were also attended by UCI President Pat McQuaid, Tygart listed only one measure taken by cycling authorities, which was to shut down an independent panel looking into the relation between cycling leaders and Armstrong, who has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles. The independent commission had been established to examine claims the UCI had accepted financial donations from Armstrong as well as covering up samples. "They disbanded the independent commission that was set up at the very time it began to actually act independent," Tygart said. When the UCI shut down the panel two months after its start, it said that it wanted an amnesty-style "truth and reconciliation" commission instead. The UCI has said that it had tested Armstrong 189 times and caught top riders Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton, which proved helpful in the investigation against Armstrong.dddddddddddd Still, Tygart said the UCI was moving too slowly to reform a sport that has been hit hard by doping scandals. He said the lack of action came in the face of promises to reform after USADA produced its report on Armstrong in October. "We have seen nothing. It has been over seven months since our report and their declaration that they needed to take decisive action," he said. "So, of course, we are frustrated." In Europe, cyclings biggest scandal has been the Operation Puerto blood-doping case in Spain, where a judge ruled last month that key evidence that could implicate more athletes should be destroyed -- preventing sport agencies from uncovering other cheaters. Tygart called it "an obvious setback," but was heartened by appeals to keep hundreds of blood bags available for analysis. And he pointed out that the Armstrong case proved that even if such clear-cut evidence doesnt exist, "that cannot stop anti-doping agencies ... from doing the job," since proof could also be obtained from teammates and other officials. ' ' '