Another NFL player seems to have gotten himself into trouble, and it appears as though the Buffalo Bills will have a tough situation on their hands in the coming weeks. Star running back LeSean McCoy was reportedly involved in an altercation with three off-duty police officers after a dispute in a Philadelphia nightclub. Two of the officers were hospitalized with injuries that included broken ribs, a broken nose and a fractured skull.
Now, the Bills will have a decision to make regarding McCoy’s future with the team. Although McCoy has been a star in the past, there is no question that he has made a major mistake, and he must pay the price as a result. The Bills should make the decision to cut their losses and get rid of McCoy to make a statement.
The allegations against McCoy are downright disturbing. The fact that he was responsible for causing these serious injuries are a major red flag. The NFL can be hypocritical about various forms of violence at times, given that their on-field product is extremely violent for the most part, but they have rightly cracked down on off-the-field violence lately. The league will likely be very upset with McCoy for his actions, and they could deal him a long-term suspension pending an investigation of the incident.
Also, if there is one thing we know about the Bills, it is that their head coach Rex Ryan has had trouble controlling his locker room in the past. With the New York Jets, it seemed like there were several times where the team quit on Ryan late in the season, and that is the reason why he was fired in 2014.
The Bills already have a lot of egos in their locker room from Percy Harvin to Mario Williams and others, and they simply do not have room to keep a player like McCoy around. Granted, he may be respected by his teammates, but his recent behavior has shown that he is willing to put his own interests in front of those of the team. The Bills must react quickly and either work with the NFL to try and suspend McCoy, or they should just get rid of him to teach him a lesson.
On a less serious note, the Bills can probably afford to get rid of McCoy. Although he is their best running back, the team has two young players who should be able to carry the load without him. Karlos Williams and Mike Gillislee both performed well last season in limited action, so the team would probably succeed with them as the workhorses. The Bills could add a back in the draft as well if they were inclined to do so, and Ezekiel Elliott, Paul Perkins and Derrick Henry would probably be on the team’s radar.
At the end of the day, the Bills just need to get rid of McCoy. Unless he was defending himself, then his actions against those off-duty officers were completely unwarranted. I would expect the team to cut him within a week if an investigation finds him guilty of the crimes he is accused of.
