It seems that former Philadelphia Eagles running back LeSean McCoy isn't all that excited about his reported and wholly unexpected trade to the Buffalo Bills.
ESPN's Josina Anderson spoke with a source close to McCoy shortly after the leak and got a deeper sense of the young running back's thinking.
"He's a Pennsylvania kid. He's never played football outside of Pennsylvania-high school, college, pro. So of course he's not happy," the source said, per Anderson." Sounds like it's pretty final to me unless LeSean is refusing to go to Buffalo."
There was also a cryptic bit (it's difficult to tell exactly what Anderson means here) about how McCoy is "not going to make it easy, that's for sure," on the Bills, perhaps an allusion to the fact that a new contract with Buffalo is most likely the final piece of the trade puzzle.
McCoy has spent his entire football life in Pennsylvania - he went to school at the University of Pittsburgh before being drafted by the Eagles - and is now switching from a larger market team to playing in a city known for its small-town feel and brutal winters.
"It'll be interesting to see how this process plays itself out because he's an interesting individual," the source told Anderson. "In your mind, when you think of Buffalo you think of cold and losing games. It's not like it's the Philadelphia market where you're always on t.v. and you're playing for like the division title or that type of thing...It was unexpected. I'll tell you that much."
There's also the respect angle - McCoy was the NFL's leading rusher in 2013, Chip Kelly's first year in the league. The move certainly signals Kelly's belief that McCoy needs him much more than the enigmatic head coach needs his brash running back.
"Honestly, he's frustrated...It's alright. It's the league. I told him that. I guess he just never experienced that, but he was like 'why me.'"
McCoy, per the source, was expecting to discuss a contract restructuring with the team at some point. Instead, he's the newest member of the Buffalo Bills.
The Bills, despite a poor recent history, seem well-positioned for a big step forward next season under new head coach Rex Ryan, meaning McCoy may not be so upset with the move in the end.
