LeSean McCoy carried the football just eight times against the Dolphins in Week 7, and the star runner didn’t have a touch in the fourth quarter, as he was seen on the sideline with his left hamstring heavily wrapped.
After the game, McCoy explained what happened.
I just tried to take off on a certain pattern we have or a route and it just didn’t feel right. I felt a little pain. I gave it all I had, but it was the smartest thing to do (to step out of the game). I didn’t re-injure anything or make it worse. It was the best thing. I kind of felt it. It was kind of like a warning I guess.
In the second half of this video, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport gave a specific update on McCoy’s injury, saying; “Well it certainly does put his availability for the big Patriots game this coming weekend in doubt. He was good to go after pre-game warm-ups. Felt like himself. Felt like 100%. Just went out there and tweaked the hamstring again. But it is just a tweak. And I’m told he left the game as a precaution. So it’s too early to know if he will or will not be out there this weekend.”
Dr. David Chao of the National Football Post dedicated an article to the McCoy returning then re-tweaking his hamstring situation, and it’s a good read. Basically, he proclaimed it wasn’t necessarily anyone’s fault for McCoy’s hamstring aggravation against Miami.
Chris Brown of BuffaloBills.com mentioned the following about how McCoy felt in pre-game warm-ups, which was obviously important in deciding whether or not the running back would be active.
“On Sunday morning just a couple of hours before the Bills Week 7 game against the Dolphins, LeSean McCoy was running routes in the red zone at Hard Rock Stadium. Tyrod Taylor was throwing him passes. His routes were crisp. He had a burst. He then went through ladder drills steadily building up to top speed. McCoy felt great.” McCoy even added, “I felt great going into my cuts, warming up, running, cutting, I felt good. That was the only reason I would play if I was 100 percent.”
Brown also quoted McCoy saying this about his current injury: “It’s not one of those major issues like last year when I was in deep, deep pain where it’s something that just takes time. I think a full week of practicing and taking my steps I should be fine. We’ll see how it happens.”
Given nearly identical reports from Rapoport and Brown as well as Chao’s assessment, to me, the Bills didn’t make a bad choice by letting McCoy play. Sure, they likely could have used him in the fourth quarter when they lost the lead, but the decision to keep him on the sideline during the final stanza was a prudent one, especially with the Patriots and Seahawks next on the schedule.