LeSean McCoy certainly doesn’t lack confidence in his playing abilities, however, heading into the 2014-15 season he’s giving credence to those around him.
The star running back is the focal point of Philadelphia Eagles offence, but McCoy feels quarterback Nick Foles is primed to improve on his terrific 2013-14 season and take his game to a new level.
“The thing with Nick is, he wants to be the best. The type of success he’s having I’m not surprised by it because he works hard,” McCoy told Sportsnet 590 The Fan Friday. “I think even playing with Mike [Vick], he’s learned a little bit from him because Mike is a good leader. Nick is actually a quiet guy but he’s being more vocal.
“He’s playing at a high level. He’s actually being confident. I think having confidence puts you in a whole different dimension because once you’re confident you can play fast and you can do the things you want to do.”
Playing fast and doing so with confidence is vital in a Chip Kelly system and McCoy, who’s coming off a season where he racked up 1,607 rushing yards, 539 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns, doesn’t lack in either area.
NFL 2014 previews: 32 teams in 32 days
The 26-year-old also expressed extreme confidence in Kelly, who went 10-6 in his first year as Eagles head coach. After an initial learning curve, McCoy has been happy with the way his team responded to Kelly’s way of doing things.
“It was tough [when Kelly first came on board] because we didn’t know what to expect,” McCoy explained. “We always heard of the type of offence he had, the big play capability it had and the fast pace. That was really it…until he got here and expressed how he felt, what he wanted done and now we know.
“With Chip, man, we have so much fun with him. I don’t think the media gets to realize what type of coach he really is. I love Chip. The way he can joke and also push you, make you work hard to get things going.”
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The Eagles lost a major playmaker in DeSean Jackson, but with receiver Jeremy Maclin back healthy, young tight end Zach Ertz playing well and general manager Howie Roseman bringing in Darren Sproles and drafting promising wide out Jordan Matthews, the Eagles are loaded with weapons and heavily favoured to win the NFC East.
“We have the right players, the right tools and we want to win,” McCoy added. “We have the right guys in the room to win and that’s what it’s all about. We’re going in the right direction.”
The Eagles, a team looking to put a wild card loss to the New Orleans Saints last winter behind them, open the regular season Sept. 7 when they host the Jacksonville Jaguars.
