Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy spoke with the media after the blockbuster deal sending Sammy Watkins out of Buffalo and bringing 2014 second-round- pick Jordan Matthews to One Bills Drive. McCoy was not very cryptic about his feelings on the caliber of player Matthews is compared to Watkins.
When asked about the trade McCoy said there’s “obviously a difference” between Watkins and Matthews. “If you compare the two, it's obvious you can agree who is better," McCoy continued.
Granted, Watkins is widely considered a better receiver than Matthews, but that is not something you would expect to hear about his newest teammate. It’s particularly strange given that in 2014, when both players were on the Philadelphia Eagles together, McCoy was quick to sing the praises of Matthews, as Philly.com reports here.
“That rookie we got, Matthews, is looking real good. There’s been a lot of talk about this draft class being deep at wide receivers, but I’m real confident in this one being the best of the class,” McCoy said at the time. “It’s still early, you got to go through the season and see how he does, but he looks amazing.”
Friday’s quotes were also interesting considering how excited McCoy was at the possibility of having another former Eagle wideout on the Bills this season. That didn’t work out so well, but McCoy worked his hardest to try and get his former teammate to sign with Buffalo then.
Maybe something personal happened between Matthews and McCoy, or maybe Shady was just upset after losing the team’s top receiving threat. Regardless of what it was, the comments are still strange.