You may remember Leodis McKelvin.
He was the Buffalo cornerback who wrestled the football away from Brent Celek for an interception in the fourth quarter of the Eagles’ 23-20 win over the Bills on Dec. 13.
McKelvin, who joined the Eagles on a two-year deal Tuesday (see story), remembered the play well. And his recollection of what happened is a pretty good representation of Chip Kelly’s offense in Philadelphia during 2015.
“They kept on running [the play],” McKelvin said. “They kept on running it. They ran it about four or five times going down the field, they switched to the other side, they kept on running it. I had a feeling that they were going to go back to it.”
Yes, the Eagles kept running that play until Kelly himself was run out of town a couple weeks later. Since then, Howie Roseman has retaken control of the organization and the team brought in a new head coach in Doug Pederson.
There’s also a new defensive coordinator named Jim Schwartz.
And he’s the reason the 30-year-old McKelvin decided to basically forgo free agency and sign with the Eagles, the only team he met with after being cut by the Bills four days earlier.
“I like to go ahead and get things solidified,” McKelvin said of his quick decision to sign.
When asked why he decided on the Eagles, McKelvin’s answer was pretty easy: familiarity with Schwartz’s defense. In 2014, his only year under Schwartz, McKelvin had the best season of his eight-year career, hauling in a career-high four interceptions to go along with 48 tackles in 10 games.
What does he like about Schwartz’s defense?
“It’s very simple,” said McKelvin, who added that the defensive line gets wide and gets after quarterbacks, which helps him on the back end.
In their meeting on Tuesday at the NovaCare Complex, Schwartz told McKelvin he plans on running a defense in Philly that will be very similar to the one he ran in 2014 in Buffalo, with similar terminology, which can often be a big hurdle for players switching systems.
McKelvin isn’t a huge free-agent splash. He was once a first-round pick, but he’s now 30 and has never been to a Pro Bowl. Still, he’ll provide some much-needed depth and versatility in the secondary.
During his career, McKelvin has played outside corner, slot corner and even some safety. McKelvin said the Eagles haven’t told him where they envision him playing in 2015.
“I could play anywhere,” he said. “I see myself playing anywhere where this coaching staff wants me to play. And I’m looking forward to coming in and doing that.”
And then, there’s the matter of starting. It’s feasible McKelvin could become a starter for the Eagles in 2016, but wouldn’t say whether or not he’s expecting to start.
Aside from his work on defense, McKelvin has spent his career as a punt and kick returner. He wasn’t sure if the Eagles will have him return but said, “I love the ball in my hands.”
The Bills took McKelvin out of Troy with the 11th overall pick in 2008. McKelvin said the Eagles told him they almost moved up to pick him that year. Instead, McKelvin went to the Bills and the Eagles, who had the No. 19 pick, ended up trading out of the first round.
Eight years later, McKelvin has finally landed in Philly.