Eagles running back LeSean McCoy’s rookie contract is up after this season, and his 2012 base salary is $615,000. It’s a paltry sum for a player who last year earned first-team All-Pro honors while leading the NFL in touchdowns.
McCoy was also the 2011 FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year. (See picture.)
The Eagles previously had an extension offer on the table worth $6 million annually. That won’t cut it, but Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News reports that “everybody involved” in the McCoy extension talks is optimistic an agreement will be consummated before training camp.
Per Domowitch, the Eagles “don’t want to push the envelope” with McCoy and risk another DeSean Jackson-type scenario. While McCoy is more levelheaded than Jackson and might not let contract talks affect his on-field performance, it’s still fair to wonder whether McCoy would skip offseason practices if no deal is reached. He’d have a lot to lose if an injury occurred.
The Eagles do plan to lighten McCoy’s workload a bit in 2012, in an effort to keep him more effective in the long run.
“We probably [used him] a little bit too much last year,” coach Andy Reid said. “Now, it worked out because of his youth and he was able to stay healthy. But as we go here, we need to spot him.”
The Eagles plan to have McCoy around long term. The inevitable next step in doing so is to sign him to a long-term deal.