Take it back Tuesday: Eagles trade LeSean McCoy to Bills
In March of 2015’s calendar year, former Eagles head coach Chip Kelly sent running back LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills for linebacker Kiko Alonso.
When free agency opened up in 2015, things got pretty crazy in “The City of Brotherly Love”. Former Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly had total power to make football-related decisions. One of his first executive decisions was to send the team’s record-breaking running back, LeSean McCoy, to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for an unproven, injury prone linebacker Kiko Alonso. This move may go down in history as one of the biggest mistakes the Eagles have ever made.
McCoy joined the Eagles in 2009, when he was drafted in the second round out of Pittsburgh University. He spent his rookie season learning team legend and fan favorite Brian Westbrook. When Westbrook’s time with the Eagles came to an end, McCoy took over and quickly became a fan favorite. His shiftiness and speed led to big plays that earned him a place in the hearts of fans and made him fun to watch. Every touchdown led to his signature dance. No one will ever forget the familiar voice of Merrill Reese screaming “Touchdown, Shady McCoy”. McCoy was even drawing comparisons to NFL Hall of Fame inductee Barry Sanders. Shady McCoy was becoming the face of the Eagles.
McCoy, a true Pennsylvania native, played football at every level in the state that raised him, so of course he was shocked to learn that he had to pack his bags and head to Buffalo after experiencing two straight career seasons in Kelly’s offense. Over the course of the 2013 and 2014 seasons, he rushed for 2,926 yards and 14 touchdowns. He even ended up surpassing former Eagles running back Wilbert Montgomery’s franchise record for career yardage as he totaled 6,792 yards before being traded.
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Things fell apart in the backfield…
Quickly after McCoy’s trade, the Eagles signed both DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews. When the two came to Philadelphia, some fans were quick to forget about losing McCoy. Shady had a different way of seeing things though. He told the media that the signing of both running backs was a panic move by the Eagles. This followed Murray posting an 1,845 yard season with the Dallas Cowboys. The prospect of having Mathews spell Murray didn’t seem to be too terrible of an option. Unfortunately for Philadelphia, in hindsight, “Shady” turned out to be right.
We now know that Kelly had no real interest in Murray’s success. Murray’s stay in Philadelphia would be a disappointment while Mathews would struggle to stay healthy. Murray would eventually pack his bags and head to the Tennessee Titans. Mathews would become the feature back a year later, but once again, he struggled with injuries. Mathews, while in Philly has appeared in 26 games and he’s started in 14 of them. McCoy, by comparison, started and played in all 32 games in his final two seasons with the Eagles.
No one likes to say “I told you so” but…..
McCoy, despite some minor injuries, has remained one of the league’s top running backs statistically. The Eagles, on the other hand, have continued to struggle finding a long-term solution at the position. With the 2017 NFL Draft approaching, the Eagles are in the market for a ball carrier. Some believe they’ll take one within the first three rounds. This in spite of the fact that they spent their fifth round pick on one just last year. Meanwhile in Buffalo, McCoy is coming off of a 1,267 yard season that saw him reach the end zone 13 times. McCoy continues to let the Eagles organization know that they made a huge mistake every chance he gets to do so. He posted a picture on Instagram on Friday that showed him on top of a list that showed the rushing stats of several great NFL running backs from 2009 to 2017.
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He also continues to antagonize Alonso whenever he has an opportunity. He recently made a comment on Alonso’s Instagram, calling him a “bum” and showing his disapproval about the new contract extension that Alonso just signed. A lot has happened, but it appears that McCoy will never forget the Eagles’ decision to trade him while he was still at the peak of his career. He may never stop reminding the Eagles’ organization of the same thing.