Archives for March 4, 2015

'"He's a Pennsylvania kid. He's never played football outside of Pennsylvania — high school, college, pro," the source told Anderson. "So of course he's not happy. Sounds like it's pretty final to me unless LeSean is refusing to go to Buffalo."''

'But the Bills’ defense ended up faring just fine without Alonso in 2014. The team finished fourth in the league in both yards and points allowed. Additionally, rookie Preston Brown and third-year veteran Nigel Bradham proved to be young, every-down linebackers with similar skill sets to Alonso.'

'You don’t carry the ball 300 times two years in a row if you’re not willing to go between the tackles and take a featured back’s physical pounding. Ryan and general manager Doug Whaley are banking on it. Otherwise, they wouldn’t invest $9.75 million in a back.'

'"(Ryan is) going to get Shady the ball any way that he possibly can," said Tomlinson. "He's going to utilize all of the assets that Shady McCoy brings to a team. That means running screen routes, possibly lining him out on the outside and create mismatches. They're going to try to get this guy the ball as much as possible. We all know that Rex Ryan leans on that run game; that's what he wants to do. He wants to control the pace of the game with the run game. This guy, LeSean McCoy has proven that he can do that. I think it's going to be a perfect marriage with LeSean McCoy and Rex Ryan."'

'"(You're) the face of the franchise, (you're) the quarterback, so you have to demand certain things; you have to demand everything," Spiller continued. "You have to let the receivers know where they should be if they want to get the ball. You have to the let the running back know, 'This is where the blitz is coming from, I need you to get over there and pick it up.' I think early on, he just really didn't understand how to step on guys' toes. Once Kyle took over, he (saw) how Kyle did it, and that kinda helped him."'

'Alonso, who was the Bills' second-round pick in 2013, spent the 2014 season on injured reserve with a torn ACL. He was named as the PFWA defensive rookie of the year after piling up 159 tackles in his first season in the league.'

'The Bills contacted Spiller after the trade to thank him for his time in Buffalo. Once the Bills acquired McCoy, who has a similar running style to Spiller but has been a far more productive back during his career, keeping Spiller in the fold didn't make sense.'

'Within minutes, NFL Network and ESPN were breaking down the trade while seemingly everyone on Twitter had an opinion. The players still on the Bills' roster had quite the reactions to losing a star defensive player and gaining another superstar on offense.'

'"Once Kyle took over, he (saw) how Kyle did it and it kind of helped him," Spiller said. "He does tremendous work. He comes to work every day prepares, unbelievable, he's in the first, leaving late, last one to leave. So he has all that stuff. It was just that 'buddy-buddy.' You know how it is. You come in with some guys and you really don't want to step on any toes. But as the quarterback you have to do that."'

'The NFLPA announced the cap figures for every team in the NFL Monday, and the Buffalo Bills' number is $145,781,930. The official NFL salary cap for 2015 is $143.28 million, but the Bills rolled over a little more than $2 million from last year. This all means that the Bills will end up with a little over $27 million in cap space, according to the NFLPA.'

'The odds appear greater than not that Alonso will turn out to be a perennial elite middle linebacker for the Eagles. McCoy might be closing in fast on the dreaded running-back wall.'

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<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_Eagles_have_deal_in_place_to_send_LeSean_McCoy_to_Bills.html" target="_blank">Eagles have deal in place to send LeSean McCoy to Bills</a> (Philadelphia Inquirer)<br />

<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_Eagles__many_moves_are_strictly_business_decisions.html" target="_blank">Eagles' many moves are strictly business decisions</a> (Philadelphia Inquirer)<br />

<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_Chip_Kelly_draws_a_crowd_but_says_nothing_about_moves.html" target="_blank">Chip Kelly draws a crowd but says nothing about moves</a> (Philadelphia Inquirer)<br />

<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_Chip_lets_his_moves_do_the_talking.html" target="_blank">Chip lets his moves do the talking</a> (Philadelphia Daily News)<br />

<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_Williams_does_not_deserve_such_disdain_from_Eagles_fans.html" target="_blank">Eagles' big moves free up some big bucks to chase big free agents</a> (Philadelphia Daily News)<br />

<a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/20150304_What_if_Chip_wants_to_build_a_defense_.html" target="_blank">What if Chip wants to build a defense?</a> (Philadelphia Daily News)<br />

<a href="http://www.burlingtoncountytimes.com/sports/eagles-have-deal-in-place-to-trade-lesean-mccoy/article_c4853dfa-02ad-5d20-99ed-8b498cb5f69a.html" target="_blank">Eagles have deal in place to trade LeSean McCoy</a> (Burlington County Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.delcotimes.com/sports/20150303/kelly-ready-to-deal-mccoy-to-bills-for-linebacker-kiki-alonso" target="_blank">Kelly ready to deal McCoy to Bills for linebacker Kiki Alonso</a> (Delaware County Daily Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.delcotimes.com/sports/20150303/bob-grotz-chips-strategy-is-clearly-clearing-cap-space" target="_blank">Chip’s strategy is clearly clearing cap space</a> (Delaware County Daily Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.delawareonline.com/story/sports/nfl/eagles/2015/03/03/reports-say-eagles-trade-mccoy-bills-linebacker/24346367/" target="_blank">Reports say Eagles trade McCoy for Bills linebacker</a> (Wilmington News Journal)<br />

<a href="http://www.mcall.com/sports/football/eagles/mc-eagles-mccoy-0303-20150303-column.html" target="_blank">Eagles on verge of extreme makeover with McCoy trade</a> (Allentown Morning Call)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/lesean_mccoy_trade_could_pay_off_big_time_for_eagl.html" target="_blank">Why the LeSean McCoy trade could pay off big time for Eagles</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/did_the_eagles_get_far_value_for_lesean_mccoy_in_b.html" target="_blank">Did Eagles get fair value for LeSean McCoy in Buffalo Bills linebacker Kiko Alonso?</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/jeffrey_lurie_shows_complete_confidence_in_chip_ke.html" target="_blank">Jeffrey Lurie shows complete confidence in Chip Kelly by allowing him to jettison DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/cj_spillers_message_to_eagles_chip_kelly_call_me.html" target="_blank">C.J. Spiller's message to Eagles, Chip Kelly: Call me!</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/eagles_trade_lesean_mccoy_release_cary_williams_an.html" target="_blank">Making sense of the LeSean McCoy trade and the Eagles' whirlwind moves</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/will_lesean_mccoy_block_a_trade_to_buffalo_bills.html" target="_blank">Will Eagles' LeSean McCoy try to block trade to Buffalo Bills for Kiko Alonso?</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/eagles_blockbuster_trade_what_you_need_to_know_abo.html" target="_blank">Eagles' blockbuster trade: What you need to know about LeSean McCoy deal for Kiko Alonso</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/eagles_chip_kelly_wont_confirm_or_deny_trade_of_le.html" target="_blank">Eagles' Chip Kelly won't confirm or deny trade of LeSean McCoy for Kiko Alonso</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/eagles_options_at_running_back_with_lesean_mccoy_g.html" target="_blank">Eagles options at running back with LeSean McCoy gone</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.nj.com/eagles/index.ssf/2015/03/what_you_need_to_know_about_kiko_alonso.html" target="_blank">What you need to know about linebacker Kiko Alonso, the newest Eagle</a> (South Jersey Times)<br />

<a href="http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/eagles/eagles-trade-mccoy-release-williams-and-will-cut-cole/article_9638ef3a-c1cd-11e4-9f25-133e2e8adb26.html" target="_blank">Eagles trade McCoy, release Williams and will cut Cole</a> (Press of Atlantic City)<br />

<a href="http://www.pennlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/03/philadelphia_eagles_running_ba_3.html" target="_blank">Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy traded to Buffalo: report</a> (Harrisburg Patriot News)<br />

<a href="http://www.pennlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/03/lesean_mccoy_gives_rex_ryan_bu.html" target="_blank">LeSean McCoy gives Rex Ryan, Buffalo Bills a brash and versatile weapon</a> (Harrisburg Patriot News)<br />

<a href="http://www.pennlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/03/lesean_mccoy_trade_requires_ea.html" target="_blank">LeSean McCoy trade requires Eagles fans to trust in Kelly and the system, just as the players do</a> (Harrisburg Patriot News)<br />

<a href="http://www.pennlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/03/lesean_mccoy_trade_news_crushe.html" target="_blank">Was trading LeSean McCoy for Kiko Alonso the right move?</a> (Harrisburg Patriot News)<br />

<a href="http://www.csnphilly.com/football-philadelphia-eagles/source-eagles-trade-lesean-mccoy-buffalo-bills-linebacker-kiko-alonso" target="_blank">Source: Eagles to trade LeSean McCoy to Bills for LB Kiko Alonso</a> (CSN Philadelphia)<br />

<a href="http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/lesean-mccoy-or-not-good-deal-good-deal" target="_blank">Like LeSean McCoy or not, a good deal is a good deal</a> (CSN Philadelphia)<br />

<a href="http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/darren-sproles-other-eagles-react-shady-mccoy-trade" target="_blank">Darren Sproles, other Eagles react to Shady McCoy trade</a> (CSN Philadelphia)<br />

'Ryan is famous for his preferred style of offense — “ground and pound” — and must be thrilled to get such an offensive weapon. McCoy’s play-making abilities should be especially useful considering the Bills have a horrendous situation at quarterback with EJ Manuel as their top signal caller. McCoy, 26, has rushed for more than 1,300 yards in three of the last four seasons.'

'The trade definitely had the look of a salary dump by Philadelphia, with McCoy scheduled to make $24.25 million over the next three seasons while Alonso — still working on his rookie contract — is set to earn just $1.7 million over the next two years.'

'The trade also opens a hole for the Bills at linebacker. While there will be other options for the team, new coach Rex Ryan undoubtedly will be interested in pursuing free agent David Harris of the Jets.'