Philadelphia Eagles: Aftermath of a "Shady" Deal

Tuesday was quite a day at the NovaCare Complex.

One of the most beloved and productive Philadelphia Eagles to ever play was shown the door. One of the most recognizable and outspoken members of the team was cut loose…

And by early evening…no one cared.

That’s because LeSean “Shady” McCoy is (or will be) a Buffalo Bill. And Kristian “Kiko” Alonso is (or will be) a Philadelphia Eagle.

Sing along with me, people: I can see clearly now that… Shady’s gone.

Eagles

But it’s fairly easy to see for yourself: Come, join me on a little tour of last season’s top 10 rushers:

Five were playing for less than $1 million in 2014. Four were playing for $6 million or less. One was LeSean McCoy.

“That’s not fair,” you might say, “because a few of those guys are still on their rookie contracts.”

Yes. True. Jeremy Hill, Eddie Lacy and Le’Veon Bell are still on those rookie deals. And that leads me to my next point: It’s just not that tough to find a good running back these days. It’s not easy, of course. But it’s not hard either. The hit rate among running backs drafted in the first couple rounds of the NFL draft is extremely high. With the pro game getting more and more like the college one (teams trying to play in space and throwing the ball more than ever before) the position of running back is translating very well from college to the pros.

If you block well up front, there are lot of guys who can run productively in your offense.

You’re going, ‘I don’t care what you say. You’re a moron. You don’t trade away the most productive back in the game.’

First of all, ouch. That hurt. Secondly, sure. But was McCoy the most productive back in the game? Or even one of the game’s more productive backs?

Pro Football Focus didn’t grade McCoy as being terribly productive at all. In fact, he was the 55th rated back out of a group of 57 that played at least a quarter of their team’s offensive snaps in 2014. His trademark elusiveness? He was ranked right near the bottom (15/18) when gauging success ‘beyond the help’ of the offensive line.

Even if we reject those newfangled computer stats there are traditional red flags aplenty. 4.1 yards per carry in 2014? That was good for 24th in the NFL. His production in the passing game has waned dramatically. He was also terribly inconsistent in 2014, failing to eclipse 50 yards on the ground in a quarter of the Eagles’ games.

And we’ve not even gotten to the most damning number of all: 626. Carries. In the last two years. The most of any player in football over that span. Many studies have been done on the career cycle of an NFL running back. On how age, frequency of use, and injury affect the long-term efficacy of a back. Almost all of them come to an agreement on two things:

Players who touch the ball a lot early on in their careers tend to produce less later in their careers and running backs decline sharply at around the age of 27. McCoy will be 27 before he plays another snap in the NFL.

Oh, and then there’s also the elephant in the room.

And his name’s Chip. Chip likes to run things. And Chip loves players who love that Chip likes to run things. When Chip talks about the kinds of players he covets he uses words like: Passionate. Focused. Team-oriented.”

Guys who Chip often says, who love football: Not what football gets you.

Conspicuously absent from the list of traits Chip loves: Brash. Outspoken. Free spirited.

And so goes DeSean Jackson.

And so goes Cary Williams.

And so, now, goes LeSean McCoy.

I want to be clear that this is not a character assassination. McCoy seems to me a terrific guy. A fun person. A wonderful teammate. But I’d be lying if I said he ever seemed like a ‘Chip Kelly guy.’

It’s very clear that there is such a thing as a ‘Chip Kelly guy.’ And that this is a Chip Kelly team. And that the end goal is to have a Chip Kelly team full of ‘Chip Kelly guys.’

So what about the guy the Eagles got?

Kiko Alonso is a Chip Kelly guy.

In many senses: He is a former Kelly recruit at Oregon. He’s a guy that got into trouble and redeemed himself (read about that in a terrific piece by Michael Silver of Yahoo Sports) He’s a long, quick, rangy linebacker suited best for the 3-4 defense Kelly prefers. And he’s also a quiet kid who seems far more comfortable playing football than he does talking about football.

When healthy, in 2013, Alonso was nothing short of tremendous. He finished third in the NFL in tackles. He intercepted a pass in three consecutive games. He posted 22 tackles in a single game against the Cincinnati Bengals. His tape shows a player that loves to hit. And flies all over the field (he covers very well for a linebacker.) If healthy, he and Mychal Kendricks instantly become the fastest (and one of the very best) inside linebacker tandem in the NFL.

What now?

I think that’s really what it boils down to when we try to mete out wins and losses in a trade: The trade itself can’t accurately be judged. It’s about what a team does with the trade.

What the Philadelphia Eagles have done is create tremendous flexibility where, before, there was none.

A day ago the Eagles had to spend big money on an inside linebacker. DeMeco Ryans makes almost $7 million next year. The Eagles would either have to re-sign him at a number close to that and hope that he bounces back well from an achilles injury or let him walk and either spend just as much to replace him with a top-notch free agent or risk getting worse at the position by signing a cheaper free agent in the $2-3 million range.

Instead? They upgraded at the position and did so with a player that still has two years left on his rookie contract: earning less than $1 million a year. Get better. Spend less.

Now DeMeco can be cut and the team can put that nearly $6M of savings to use at another position.

Flexibility.

A day ago the Eagles seemed saddled with a major financial commitment at running back. Even if he agreed to restructure, McCoy would have cost the Eagles north of $10 million.

Now they have the ability to peruse the free agent market where a player like (the now expendable) C.J. Spiller would cost significantly less.

Even bringing in top free agent DeMarco Murray (which I would consider an upgrade on the field) would probably cost less than it would have to retain McCoy.

And Murray, as a person, seems like a much better fit with Chip Kelly than LeSean McCoy ever did.

Flexibility.

My point is not that the Eagles will sign DeMarco Murray. I am nearly positive that they won’t.

My point is that a deal like this, which shocks and upsets millions of fans, is actually quite spectacular for the Philadelphia Eagles. It gives them the flexibility, if they wanted to, to replace McCoy with an equally productive back, spend less money, and have added a very good young linebacker for, essentially, free.

Aug 9, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly along the sidelines during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

A more likely course of action would be to take advantage of what most scouts agree is the best running back draft class in many years.

Here, the Eagles could spend barely any money on a position where they had previously been committing $12 million and at the same time, replace a soon-to-be 27-year old back with a fresh 21-year old model with almost no wear and tear.

Flexibility.

In one day the Eagles cleared (some of this is not official, of course) an estimated $23 million in cap space (Between Cole, Williams, and McCoy.) If you factor in that DeMeco Ryans is now expendable and likely to be cut, that number moves north of $3o million. In a single day.

The Eagles are now (or will be when all of this becomes official) about $58 million under the cap. That figures to be the second largest number in the NFL (The Jags have about $60 million).

That number means that the Eagles can be players for essentially anyone they want in free agency. There is no fish too big.

Or alternatively, they could sign a whole lot of mid-level free agents to compensate for a whole bunch of draft picks they… might be trading away in the near future… …

Flexibility.

The point is flexibility. The Eagles have put themselves in a place where they can grow in any number of directions. And with a new leader in place, that seems like the wisest path for an organization.

And they did it all while getting better and younger at a crucial position.

I know, Eagles’ fans, that it hurts to see him go. He’s Shady. You’ve got visions of him leaping over Lions in the snow. You get shivers when you see him shake and leave a helpless defender on the turf… you just never figured he’d be so elusive that he’d slip away from you.

It is, however, for the best. If you’re ever going to trust Chip Kelly trust him now: don’t be so quick to judge the trade… wait to see what he does with it.

Next: Where will AP wind up?

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