NFL Player News

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said the team traded running back LeSean McCoy to the Bills and replaced him with DeMarco Murray because Murray better fits Chip Kelly's system, reports Eagles 24/7.

"We’ve been talking about the asset value of LeSean for a long time because he wasn’t the style of runner that Chip prefers, but a great player," Lurie said.

"Getting players that fit more of what he’s all about in terms of their style of play. LeSean McCoy is a great running back -- all-time franchise leader. Great guy in every way. To maximize his power spread offense, he’s always admired the one-cut runners. That’s what he admired.

"You’ve gotta let a coach try to bring in the players that fit best what he’s all about to maximize what he’s trying to accomplish. It really boils down to that. You have a decision as an owner: Do you want to fight that? Or do want to adopt it? I went all out to try and get Chip as the coach, and I’m really happy we did. He’s got a great potential future, and I’m happy to be able to provide him the resources to be able to maximize what he’s all about."

The Eagles also signed running back Ryan Mathews in free agency, who is closer in style to Murray than McCoy.

Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio expects Latavius Murray and Trent Richardson to compete for the starting running back spot on the team, per ESPN.

"I think it will be a competitive situation," Del Rio said.

Del Rio also spoke about the fact that he is encouraged by Richardson's potential.

"What I saw when we brought him in and talked to him was a young man that was hungry to kind of leave that portion of his career behind him and start fresh," Del Rio said. "My challenge to him was, 'Look, I don't want you to worry about anything other than coming in here and competing your butt off every day. Come in here and be a great teammate. Come in here and find a role on special teams. Come in here and just grind every day with the hunger you had as a freshman at Alabama.'"

After losing running back Ryan Mathews to free agency, Chargers head coach Mike McCoy believes that Branden Oliver can be a workhorse back for the team, per ESPN.

“Ryan was very unique,” McCoy said. “He’s different than what we have now. But as that physical guy, yes, you can say Branden is that physical guy we have now.”

Oliver, an undrafted free agent in 2014, led the Chargers in rushing last season with 582 yards rushing and three touchdowns. He was named Pepsi AFC offensive rookie of the week twice last year. 

McCoy went on to say that Oliver will benefit from the return of Danny Woodhead and teammate Donald Brown in 2015. Both players missed time in 2014.

“We can win with the three guys we have now,” McCoy said. “I believe that. We’re going to play them all. So, they’re all going to play in their own way, and we’ll see what happens through the draft and the rest of free agency with what’s available.”

The 23-year-old ball carrier signed a four-year contract with the team last season.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer is keen on wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. So much so, he doesn't want to get rid of Patterson via trade, according to NBC Sports Radio.

"No, no chance whatsoever," Zimmer said. "Cordarrelle is a young, emerging player who was with his third coordinator in three years. Quite frankly, we need to do a good job of figuring out how we can use him better and he needs to understand where he's supposed to be, the routes and everything."

Patterson struggled in 2014 with just 33 catches for 384 yards.

"He's going to play good football for us," wide receivers coach George Stewart said in December. "He's a first-round pick for a reason, and he's going to be very successful for us going forward."

In Raiders coach Jack Del Rio's mind, quarterback Derek Carr was asked to do too much in his rookie season. 

Carr threw the ball 599 times and completed 348 of those passes for 3,270 yards, 21 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Now that Del Rio is at the helm, he's looking to run the ball a lot more to balance things out. 

"I thought it was all about Derek last year," Del Rio said, via the San Francisco Chronicle. "I want to be able to run the ball, play good defense."

The Raiders are likely to rely on Latavius Murray to be the feature back now that Maurice Jones-Drew has retired and Darren McFadden has left for Dallas. Del Rio believes that a balanced attack should open the game up more for Carr in his second season. 

"If we do things around him, he really has a chance to flourish," Del Rio said. "He is really accurate. He has a huge upside."

Broncos coach Gary Kubiak saw enough of running back C.J. Anderson from last season's film to name him the starter heading into offseason programs, according to CBSSports.com Senior Fantasy Writer Jamey Eisenberg. 

Anderson had the best success of any of the Broncos' running backs in 2014, running for 849 yards and eight touchdowns after assuming the starting role midway through the season. 

Competing for playing time in the backfield will once again be Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman. 

Historically, Kubiak's offenses have been effective in running the football. As the Ravens offensive coordinator in 2014, Kubiak led the rushing attack to an average of 126.2 yards per game, which ranked eighth in the NFL. 

The Dolphins have re-signed running back LaMichael James and starting safety Louis Delmas on Friday, according to the Miami Herald and NFL Media, respectively. Delmas' deal is reportedly worth $3.5 million for one year, per Adam Schefter of ESPN. 

James, 25, signed with the Dolphins after San Francisco parted ways with him after the opening week of last season. He totaled five carries for nine yards in three games.

Delmas, 27, signed with the Dolphins last offseason and started in 12 of his 13 appearances. He registered 49 total tackles, one sack, one interceptions (for a TD) and three passes defensed.

Vikings running back Jerick McKinnon the St. Paul Pioneer Press earlier this week that he wants to be the top back if Adrian Peterson is not back in Minnesota for the 2015 season.

"If A.P. comes back, there's no doubt he's going to be the starter," McKinnon said. "But it's not going to change my mind-set or how I approach things or how I work. Whatever they do, my mind-set is to come in and be that guy next year.

"There's no doubt in my mind I can last the season," McKinnon said. "If that's something I have to prove, that's not a big deal for me. I'll prove it this year. I'm just really excited to get back out there with my teammates and coaches and show how far I've come since surgery."

McKinnon, 22, underwent back surgery in early December that cut his rookie season short. In 2014, he rushed for 538 yards on 113 attempts through 11 games.

The Vikings signed running back DuJuan Harris to a one-year deal, reports the National Football Post. Harris, 26, spent the past three seasons with the Packers.

He battled knee injuries but played in 19 games, rushing for 211 yards and two touchdowns and catching three passes for 28 yards.

Running back Bernard Pierce was claimed off of waivers by the Jaguars on Thursday, according to the Florida Times-Union. He carries a base salary of $660,000 for 2015.

Pierce was recently waived by the Ravens after he was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol on Wednesday morning. In three seasons with the team he racked up 1,334 yards on 353 carries with five touchdowns.