All week, Chip Kelly attempted to make amends with LeSean McCoy in the lead up to the Eagles' matchup against the Buffalo Bills Sunday. But McCoy wasn't having any of it.
LeSean McCoy hung up the phone on Chip Kelly several times in week before Bills-Eagles matchup
Kelly reportedly called McCoy this week to make amends, but McCoy kept hanging up on him.
Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
According to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Kelly called McCoy recently in order to bury the hatchet. McCoy reportedly picked up the phone, but then hung up after Kelly had identified himself. Fox Sports’ Mike Garafolo reports this happened more than once.
The rift between McCoy and Kelly dates back to the offseason, when Kelly shipped the running back to the Bills in exchange for linebacker Kiko Alonso at the start of free agency. According to McLane, McCoy was upset he was traded to Buffalo.
McCoy initially didn’t want to go to the Bills. He found out about the trade from his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, by phone. McCoy was training in Miami at the time and after breaking down in tears, he resumed running a series of sprints, each one faster than the next.
Two months after the deal, McCoy told reporters he never got along with Kelly and insinuated the head coach is a racist in an interview with ESPN. To this day, McCoy hasn’t taken those words back.
“The relationship was never really great,” McCoy said. “I feel like I always respected him as a coach. I think that’s the way he runs his team. He wants the full control. You see how fast he got rid of all the good players. Especially all the good black players. He got rid of them the fastest. That’s the truth. There’s a reason. ... It’s hard to explain with him. But there’s a reason he got rid of all the black players -- the good ones -- like that.”
Despite all of that animosity, Kelly told reporters in a conference call earlier this week he’d “love” to shake McCoy’s hand Sunday. McCoy, unsurprisingly, said he wants no part of it.
LeSean McCoy on Chip: "Why do you want me to shake that guy's hand? ... "What's the big issue?" "I gotta go, man. I'll see y'all Sunday."
— Josh Paunil (@JoshPaunil) December 9, 2015 Why can't Chip shake your hand? McCoy: "Listen man, Chip can't shake shit. At all. Nothing. He knows this. ...I can read between the lines."
— Tyler Dunne (@TyDunne) December 9, 2015 In an ironic twist, McCoy’s replacement, DeMarco Murray, is apparently feuding with Kelly as well. Murray, who’s only averaging 3.5 yards per carry this season, reportedly met with Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie this week and criticized Kelly’s approachability. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport says Murray could sink as low as fourth on the depth chart at running back this week.
Though Murray may not see the field Sunday, there’s little doubt that McCoy will be Buffalo’s featured back. In 10 games with the Bills this season, McCoy is averaging 4.6 yards per carry and has scored three touchdowns. Given that the Eagles have the sixth-worst rushing defense in the league, McCoy may finally have a chance to extract revenge on the football field Sunday instead of through the media and passive aggressive gestures.
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