PITTSBURGH — Eight years ago, Le’Veon Bell became the last Pittsburgh Steelers player to hold out during training camp. Upset the Steelers placed the franchise tag on him for a second year in a row, Bell never signed his franchise tender and followed through on a promise to sit out the entire 2018 season when he could not agree to a new contract.

Bell became a free agent and signed with the New York Jets in the following spring, ending one of the most contentious contract negotiations in franchise history. The Steelers and some other star players have endured some messy negotiations since then, but there is now a new — and more effective — tactic players are using as leverage in their contract talks.

When the most recent collective bargaining agreement between the league and the NFL Players Association was ratified in 2020, NFL owners sought to put an end to dramatic holdouts. Under the CBA, players are fined $50,000 per day during holdouts.

Under the old CBA, teams were able to waive those fines when players eventually reported, but that’s no longer the case. Now all players, except rookies, must pay those fines no matter the outcome of the negotiations.

Agents and the NFLPA had an answer NFL owners never saw coming. They found a loophole in the CBA.

Hold-ins have replaced holdouts, and they have become a popular way for disgruntled players to get leverage in negotiations.

Hold-ins are effectively the same as holdouts with one key difference: Players are still withholding their services while their agents discuss the contractual differences with their teams, but by reporting on time and being present at team meetings and practices, players avoid the expensive fines that come as a result of holding out.

Hold-ins have become an almost yearly occurrence for the Steelers since 2020, and Joey Porter Jr. is expected to be the next player to hold in if his representatives and the team cannot come to terms on a new deal before the start of training camp.

Cam Heyward, the Steelers’ union representative, was the first Steelers player to hold-in during training camp in 2020. He did not practice at all in training camp and signed a new contract one week before the start of the regular season.

T.J. Watt paid close attention and followed suit the following year. He took his hold-in all the way up to the deadline, signing his new contract — the richest for an edge rusher in NFL history at the time — two days before the start of the regular season.

When Steelers players have held in and did not practice or play in preseason games, they’ve responded with terrific seasons. Watt famously played one of the best games of his career against the Buffalo Bills in the 2021 season opener. Without a single practice all summer, Watt had five quarterback hits on Josh Allen, sacked him twice, forced a fumble and drew three holding penalties in the Steelers’ 23-16 upset in Orchard Park.

“I felt really fresh,” Watt said after the game.

Watt felt that way for the entire season. He went on to have the best season of his career, tying the NFL record for sacks with 22.5. He also forced five fumbles and recovered three while earning first-team All-Pro honors for a third consecutive season.

Heyward also showed no ill effects from his 2020 hold-in, as he earned second-team All-Pro honors.

Diontae Johnson saw the leverage Heyward and Watt held over the team and became the next Steelers player to hold-in during the 2022 training camp. But his hold-in only lasted one week, and he signed for less than market value. Johnson settled for $13.1 million per season, which was far less than other receivers of his level were getting at the time.

Last summer was another example of general manager Omar Khan holding firm when two players refused to practice. Heyward and Chris Boswell did not participate during the first few weeks of training camp, but neither got what he wanted from the Steelers.

Boswell quietly returned to practice without a new contract. He had another excellent season, making 10 of his 11 attempts from 50 yards and beyond, and signed a new contract in May that made him the NFL’s highest-paid kicker.

The biggest story of last year’s training camp was Heyward, who threatened to hold out into the regular season as he tried to get more money added to his deal.

“Honestly, I’m looking to be valued,” Heyward said last August. “In my eyes, when I look around at my position, I think I’m 22nd [in compensation] as a defensive tackle. I’m 32nd as a defensive lineman. I know what I bring to this team and what I’m capable of on and off the field. It’s hard for me, after the year I had, to justify playing at the number I’m playing at.”

In the end, it was Heyward who caved. With public sentiment against him, he returned to practice after the Steelers agreed to add incentives to his existing contract, many of which he did not reach. But like Boswell, the Steelers signed Heyward to a new deal in the spring, giving him a small raise.

How Porter’s contract situation plays out remains to be seen, but recent history has proven holding in yields better results than holding out.