The good news about LeSean McCoy is that he has to get better in Week 5, right? He can't possibly be worse than he was last week, right?
The Philadelphia Eagles running back entered the season as one of the most coveted players in fantasy football. Some had him pegged as the top player overall. It wasn't hard to see why, considering McCoy's production last year and the fact that Chip Kelly had more time to hone his offense.
However, the two-time All-Pro has failed to deliver in a big way. According to NFL.com, he's amassed 31.60 points, which makes him the 28th-best fantasy back. Darren Sproles is actually 13 places ahead of him.
The last two weeks have been particularly brutal for McCoy, as he's rushed for 39 yards on 29 carries. NFL on ESPN found a way to make that number even more depressing:
"I don't think I'm struggling at all," McCoy said after going for 22 yards on 19 carries against the Washington Redskins in Week 3, per CSNPhilly.com's Geoff Mosher. "I don't know what you mean by that. I don't think I'm struggling, at all. So I don't know what you mean by that."
He might be more receptive to that critique now.
Luckily, the St. Louis Rams could be the perfect tonic for the struggling running back. Through three games, the Rams are giving up an average of 155 yards a game, which is 30th in the league. Football Outsiders ranks their overall defense at 30th in defense-adjusted value over average.
Look at it this way: If Bobby Rainey can drop 144 yards on St. Louis, surely McCoy can crack the century mark as well.
Bleacher Report's Cian Fahey tried to take a deep dive into the Eagles offense and discover the reason(s) for McCoy's early problems. He laid a lot of the blame on poor offensive line play but also found that McCoy is lacking some trust in his own game.
Fahey highlighted a play from the Eagles' Week 2 win over the Indianapolis Colts during which McCoy hesitated rather than cutting to the right and bursting through the hole:
McCoy has the physical ability to make this play; there just appears to be doubt in his approach that wasn't evident last season. These are the kinds of plays that McCoy needs to be consistently better at if he is to mimic the play of a back such as Marshawn Lynch or Le'Veon Bell, who consistently get the most out of their blocking.
Even the best players in the league aren't immune to crises of confidence. All McCoy needs is one good week to get that confidence back. Sooner or later, he'll figure it out again.
As the saying goes, form is temporary but class is permanent.
For those who own McCoy, by no means should you consider dropping him or benching him. Don't start panicking after what have been two disappointing games. Looking at his Week 5 matchup, things should turn around on Sunday.
If you don't own McCoy and want to be cunning, you might be able to take advantage of an owner who's grown frustrated with McCoy's lack of production so far. CBSSports.com Dave Richard found some deals in which the Eagles star was being dealt straight up for Zac Stacy and C.J. Spiller, respectively. Another trade had Philip Rivers and Donald Brown going the other way for McCoy.
This plan would clearly be a long shot, but it could be worth it to sound some owners and see what it would take to get McCoy. Maybe you can get him for a steal.
from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1v3yT4F
via IFTTT September 30, 2014 at 10:58PM
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