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McCoy's New $40 Million Contract Demonstrates Bills' Commitment
If fantasy football owners had any lingering concerns about LeSean McCoy's commitment to the Buffalo Bills, or vice versa, they shouldn't now.

The Bills and McCoy have agreed on a new five year contract with $26.5 million guaranteed.

McCoy will make $16 million in his first year total with $40 million due over five years, according to agent Drew Rosenhaus.

In case you missed it, the Eagles agreed to trade McCoy to Buffalo Tuesday in a stunning deal for Bills linebacker Kiko Alonso. The move can become official on Tuesday when the new NFL league year begins.

McCoy was already due $24.5 million over the next three seasons.

On Wednesday, Buffalo made another trade in an effort to shore up the quarterback position, agreeing to acquire Matt Cassel from the Minnesota Vikings in a deal that involves undisclosed draft picks.

For Bills fans, this has to be seen as a major turnaround.

As NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal summed up, "When a new coach and new owner arrive in town, usually there is a honeymoon period before real expectations set in. But the arrival of McCoy, Rex Ryan, and owner Terry Pegula combined with a wildly talented defense have raised the bar in Buffalo. Anything short of a playoff appearance in 2015 would be a disappointment now."

As for the hopes of fantasy owners? Will the novelty of McCoy working in a new scheme -- one that will almost certainly be of the "ground and pound" variety that Ryan prefers and that new offensive coordinator Greg Roman is more than capable of implementing -- be enough to overcome the fact the star running back is coming off a down season?

Remember, in his first six years with the Eagles, McCoy enjoyed four 1,000-yard rushing seasons, including a career-best 1,607 yards in 2013. Last year he slipped to 1,319 yards and his average per carry was a whopping yard less (4.2) than it had been in 2013.

However, as the Sports Xchange notes, McCoy had just 163 fewer rushing yards than the Bills accumulated as a team.

McCoy has appeared in 90 games, all with the Eagles, and the 5-foot-10, 215-pounder has 6,742 rushing yards (4.6 per carry) and 44 touchdowns, plus 300 receptions for 2,282 yards and 10 touchdowns. He led the NFL with 20 touchdowns in 2011 (including a league-best 17 on the ground), and in 2013 he led the NFL in rushing yards and yards from scrimmage (2,146).

The downside to McCoy: He's got some wear and tear on his body. He has had more touches over the last five years than anyone in the NFL, and there's a fear that he's already on the decline (he turns 27 in July), which is nothing new for running backs in the NFL who have six years of service.

All that said, there will be no shortage of owners ready to commit to McCoy with a first-round pick when draft day rolls around this summer.

And what about the supporting cast?

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports that the Jets would like to re-sign Bilal Powell, but that they think he’s “leaning” toward following Ryan to Buffalo.

As Profootballtalk.com's Josh Alper pointed out, Powell has spent his entire four-year NFL career with the Jets after they made him a fourth-round pick in 2011. Powell ran the ball 33 times last season, a big drop from the previous two seasons, and caught 11 passes while maintaining a role in the team’s offense because he was their best pass blocker at running back.

Alper added that that skill would come in handy as a complement to McCoy, although it would make for a crowded running back room in Buffalo.

Fred Jackson, Anthony Dixon and Bryce Brown are already on hand behind McCoy and five tailbacks would be a lot for even Ryan’s beloved ground and pound approach to moving the football.

Jackson is 34 years old and at the end of the line as a full-time player. Brown and Dixon are nothing more than depth players who haven't proven they are capable of carrying the load.

Should Powell land in Buffalo, there would likely be other moves to follow as the Bills try to build an offense that doesn’t look like it will put too much on the plate of Cassel and EJ Manuel.

But McCoy's plate?

That's going to be full. Very full.