Anything can happen in the NFL. Teams will always value the bottom line because it's how they stay afloat. As impossible as something may seem, there is always the slight chance of it occurring.
That brings us to the Philadelphia Eagles and running back LeSean McCoy. McCoy combined for a total of 1,474 yards this season, which would be very good if his yards-per-carry average hadn't dropped from 5.2 last year to 4.2 in 2014. McCoy also scored six fewer times this past season.
Philly's offensive line suffered through repeated bouts with the injury bug and the addition of Darren Sproles ate into McCoy's workload some. But fans are still worried about McCoy's future with the team after what can be considered a down year. He still has elite playmaking ability and is only 27 years old, but his contract situation could make things interesting.
McCoy's 2015 salary cap hit is set to be almost $12 million, one of the highest marks in the league for a running back. Cutting him would leave the Eagles with $4.4 million in dead money. Working in Shady's favor is just $1 million in guaranteed money left on his deal. The most mutually beneficial outcome would be for the two sides to work out a restructuring, something McCoy didn't seem too opposed to doing.
"It depends," McCoy told NJ.com. "We'll talk about that as a team. I love my franchise, love Philadelphia."
If an agreement cannot be reached, it's not outside the realm of possibility for the Eagles to consider cutting McCoy.
"If the Eagles decided that Chris Polk could do nearly as well running behind this offensive line, they could release McCoy," ESPN's Phil Sheridan wrote. "That sounds crazy until you recall that last year at this time, releasing DeSean Jackson would have seemed just as far-fetched. Again, though, McCoy and his agent knew what the contract said before they signed it. So did the Eagles. The two sides agreed to deal that could result in the player being released at age 26, after his two most productive seasons. There can be little doubt that coach Chip Kelly would want McCoy back. Interestingly, it might be up to deposed general manager Howie Roseman to figure out a way to reduce McCoy's cap number. Certainly, any conversation where Roseman had to convince Kelly that McCoy isn't worth the contract - which Roseman negotiated while Andy Reid was the Eagles' coach - would be entertaining."
