Hours removed from the shocking report by ESPN's Adam Schefter that the Philadelphia Eagles have traded franchise-leading rusher LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills, in exchange for Oregon Duck-alumnus, linebacker Kiko Alonso, fans are still clamoring on social media.
Last night, I spoke with former Eagles right guard from 2004-2009, Shawn Andrews, and asked his opinion of the trade. Andrews and McCoy were teammates in Philadelphia during the 2009 season.
The two-time consensus All-American out of the University of Arkansas had the following to say:
Considering what his cap number would have been, and his history of concussions, it could bode well for the Eagles.
Shady isn't as explosive as he was in 2013, but he's still a dazzler. Also, [you] have to consider that [McCoy] played behind a makeshift [offensive] line in 2014, but I'll take that line over Buffalo's any day.
Andrews, 32, was the 16th overall pick in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft. The 16th selection originally belonged to the San Francisco 49ers, however the Eagles moved-up through trade, parting ways with their 28th & 58th overall picks from that year's draft.
Despite earning a starting position as right guard out of Training Camp, Andrews' promising rookie season hardly came to fruition. He fractured his right fibula in the 31-17 victory over the New York Giants in first game of 2004, forcing him to be an onlooker to one of the Eagles' best seasons in franchise history as they advanced to Super Bowl XXXIX.
Over the next three seasons, Andrews was in the prime of his career. He earned two Pro Bowl selections in 2006 and 2007, and one All-Pro selection in 2007. The Eagles' right guard was named an alternate to the Pro Bowl in 2005 as well, and missed only one start during this three-year stretch: Week 16 of 2007 in the Eagles' 38-23 victory over New Orleans (knee injury).
That injury set-off an unfortunate domino effect for the Camden, Arkansas-native. This started with Andrews holding out of Training Camp in 2008 due to depression. Andrews revealed the following reasoning behind his struggles, which was relayed in a May 2009 article by The New York Times:
Andrews weighed 230 pounds by age 12 and said he had wrestled with his self-image for years, having been picked on because of his size and because he grew up poor in Camden, Ark. He said he received word before his rookie season in 2004 that a childhood friend was planning to have him killed over money. He said he had come to regret spending lavishly on expensive cars and other baubles that he now considered frivolous.
He said he felt overjoyed by the birth of his son 13 ½ months ago, but also worried whether he was ready to be a father, promising himself that he would be around for JaShawn in a way that his own father had not.
Perhaps most revealingly, Andrews said he believed that, to some extent, he was forced into football as a sixth grader because he was big, not because he particularly loved the sport. He said he had not watched a complete professional football game unless he was playing in it.
In November of 2013, during the Richie Incognito-Jonathan Martin bullying scandal, Andrews came out and talked about the Eagles' locker room during his time in Philadelphia, describing it as if he was "in a living hell". The following is an except from Sync Weekly:
Andrews alleges McNabb and other Eagles players spread rumors concerning Andrews’ sexual orientation. The gossip spread to other players on different NFL teams, and by the end of his six years in Philadelphia, Andrews had contemplated suicide and eventually had to seek psychiatric treatment, which meant missing the 2008 training camp.
Former Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb soon thereafter refuted those claims from Andrews. Whether bullying actually happened or not does not matter in this instance. Andrews believed he was in fact bullied, and therefore this unfortunately played a contributing factor to him suffering from depression.
Missing most of Training Camp in 2008 ultimately prevented Andrews from receiving the proper conditioning to prepare for the long NFL season ahead. It wouldn't be long before his body broke down. In Week 2 against the Dallas Cowboys, Andrews suffered a back injury, which ultimately sidelined him for the remainder of that season and the season thereafter in 2009. He was released on March 17, 2010, with head coach Andy Reid stating the team had "decided to move in another direction."
Signing on with the New York Giants for the 2010 season, Andrews was converted to offensive tackle and turned his career in the right direction. He managed to play in 13 games, starting in seven. Back issues remained to be an issue, however, and he needed injections throughout the season to subsidize the pain. Andrews retired after his release in the Summer of 2011.
Andrews and McCoy never played an official game on the field together, even during the preseason. However, they still both took part in Training Camp at Lehigh University in 2009, and likely shared conversation throughout the season as they both played on the offensive side of the ball.
McCoy, 26, was drafted 53rd overall (2nd round) in the 2009 NFL Draft out of the University of Pittsburgh.
Thankfully, Shawn Andrews seems to have overcome his battle with depression. Now approaching five seasons retired from the National Football League, he has shown good spirits on Twitter, and is always willing to converse with fans.
Matt Rappa (@mattrappa) is a contributor to Eagledelphia.com.
