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LeSean McCoy Is Headed To The Buffalo Bills In A Surprising Move

By Daniel Benjamin
Published on: 03:45 PST, Mar 4, 2015

The Buffalo Bills and the Philadelphia Eagles have struck a deal that will send running back LeSean McCoy to the Bills for linebacker Kiko Alonso, as as first reported by ESPN Insider Adam Schefter.

Bills free agent-to-be C.J. Spiller, who said the Bills told him he will not be with the team next season, confirmed the deal.

The deal can not be completed until the NFL begins their new season on at 4 p.m. on March 10. The deal is a surprise as there are very few player-for-player deals in the NFL.

The deal does make sense for both teams.

The Bills made upgrading their running back situation a priority this offseason after they ran for just 92.6 yards a game, which ranked 25th in the league. And McCoy will do just that.

McCoy rushed for 1,319 yards (third in the NFL last year), on 312 carries, marking the second consecutive he has topped the 1,000 yard mark and fourth time of his career. The soon-to-be 27-year old averaged 4.2 yards per carry in 2014 and had five rushing touchdowns.

McCoy has the third most rushing yards (6,792) and fourth most rushing touchdowns (44) in the NFL since being selected in the second round of the 2009 draft. He is also known as a good receiver out of the backfield and had 28 receptions last season.

McCoy has three-years left on his contract though he may be interested in renegotiating his deal. He is currently slated to make $10.5 million this upcoming season, $6.9 million in 2016 and $7.6 million in 2017.

With Spiller’s departure imminent, 34-year old Fred Jackson along with Anthony Dixon and former Eagle Bryce Brown will likely backup McCoy. Buffalo could still select a running back in the upcoming 2015 draft though it likely be in the middle rounds rather than the early rounds. Buffalo does not own a first round draft pick this year.

Buffalo (9-7) is coming off their first winning season since 2004 and has one of the best defenses in the league. The Bills also have some weapons on offense but they need an experienced quarterback and offensive line help.

While the deal appears to be a slam dunk for the Bills, there are concerns surrounding McCoy with the least being whether McCoy wants to be in Buffalo.

McCoy was inconsistent last year, his 4.2 yards per carry was well below the 5.8 yards he averaged in 2013. McCoy also tied a career-high with four fumbles, losing three of them, and his reception total was a career-worst.

There is also questions whether McCoy will fit in coach Rex Ryan’s “ground-and-pound” style. As well as, whether McCoy will wear down after two straight season of 300+ carries the past and 1,461 attempts for his career? He also has 300 career receptions.

For the Eagles, the deal clears $11.95 million from the salary cap and they get a young linebacker in Alonso. Alonso played for Eagles coach Chip Kelly at Oregon.

Alsonso was a second round draft pick by the Bills in 2013 and finished third in the NFL in tackles with 159 in his rookie season. He also tied for the team lead with four interceptions that year. Alonso missed all of last year after tearing his ACL while working out at his alma-mater.

Philadelphia ranked 28th in the NFL in total defense, surrendering 375.6 yards a game. The Eagles ranked last in passing defense (264.4 yards a game) and 15th in rushing defense (110.7). They were also tied for 22nd in scoring defense, permitting 25.0 points a game.

[ Photo via Wikipedia Commons ]

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