LeSean McCoy Says He Never Called Chip Kelly Racist, Comments on Trade to Bills

In an interview with Hannah Storm of ESPN, Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy said he never called Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly a racist and spoke about his trade from the Eagles to the Bills.

In the May edition of ESPN the Magazine (h/t ESPN's Mike Rodak), McCoy said of Kelly, "There's a reason he got rid of all the black players—the good ones—like that."

He elaborated on those comments when speaking with Storm.

"That’s how I felt," he said. "And everybody was so quick to say I called him a racist. I never called him a racist. And I have no issue with Chip. I have no hatred toward him."

Storm also asked him if he felt race played a role in his trade to the Bills, which he seemed to imply in his original comments to ESPN the Magazine.

"I wouldn't say that. I think that I wasn’t the player that (Kelly) wanted," McCoy said. "So no matter if I was black or whatever it is, at the end of the day I’m going to have my own thoughts about it and other people will have their own thoughts and own opinions. After I kind of got all the angry thoughts out, I was happy."

He also said that while he was initially motivated after the trade to prove the Eagles wrong for moving him, he felt playing for himself rather than the team would be selfish. He wanted to prioritize winning games, not accumulating personal stats or having a better season than DeMarco Murray, whom the Eagles signed to be his successor. 

McCoy framed his original comments about Kelly and feelings about the trade as an emotional response.

He clearly took the trade hard, as was to be expected from the player who spent his whole life in Pennsylvania after growing up in Harrisburg, playing for Pitt in college and accumulating 6,792 rushing yards and 54 total touchdowns in his six seasons with Philadelphia.

In his interview with Storm, however, he appeared content with the next chapter in his career and ready to accomplish great things with the Bills.

While his Bills debut was lackluster—he rushed 17 times for 41 yards and caught three passes for 46 more yards—he remains one of the NFL's most dynamic playmakers and will be the focal point of Buffalo's offense this season.