When he was much younger and brasher Ryan Jensen Color Rush Jersey , LeSean McCoy recalled informing the league’s older running backs of how he was going to one day chase them down in the record books.

A month shy of his 30th birthday, the Buffalo Bills veteran is suddenly beginning to realize how the tables have turned.

”I hang out in the offseason with a lot of running backs like (Todd) Gurley and (Le’Veon) Bell, and the way they view me is like the old head baller, ” McCoy said Tuesday, referring to the Rams and Steelers star running backs. ”It drives me. Now it’s like reversed. Now it’s `OK, I’m still an elite player, but these young guys are creeping on me.’

”So I’ve got to continue to do better and be better.”

Nothing has slowed him down yet, entering his fourth year in Buffalo and 10th in the NFL.

McCoy is coming off a season in which he had 1,138 yards rushing, and 1,586 yards from scrimmage (including 448 receiving) for the fifth-best totals of his career.

”What can I say, it’s been a great ride. And I look forward to having a big year again,” McCoy said, speaking to reporters for the first time this offseason Cheap Albert Wilson Jersey , and after the Bills opened a three-day mandatory minicamp.

”I’m excited about this year. I’m excited to be back in that offense where it’s hitting on all cylinders.”

How quickly the offense can begin clicking is an uncertainty given the offseason turnover.

With third-year starter Tyrod Taylor traded to Cleveland, Buffalo is breaking in a new quarterback after drafting Wyoming’s Josh Allen in the first round and signing AJ McCarron in free agency. Brian Daboll takes over as coordinator after Rick Dennison was fired in January. And the line’s being revamped after center Eric Wood retired and guard Richie Incognito was released.

Though he’ll miss Taylor, McCoy likes what he’s seen from Allen, who is being developed behind McCarron and second-year holdover Nathan Peterman.

”I’ve got to be honest. He’s pretty good, and I’m not a big fan of rookies,” McCoy said of Allen.

”It’s still early. I don’t want to make him Jim Kelly already, he just has to learn different things,” McCoy said, referring to the Bills Hall of Fame quarterback. ”He’s got a lot on his plate. But other than that, just talent-wise and intelligence, he has it to be a starting quarterback and also a franchise quarterback.”

McCoy’s biggest concern is losing Wood and Incognito, who played big roles in helping Buffalo rank no worse than sixth in the league in yards rushing in each of the past three years.

”I would be lying if I told you it didn’t matter,” he said.

Otherwise, McCoy was in a playful mood.

He questioned how he fell from 27th to 30th on the NFL Network’s top 100 player rankings.

”I think I should never go past 25 Da'Shawn Hand Color Rush Jersey ,” said McCoy, whose jersey number happens to be 25. ”If the 25 dude’s better than me, I don’t see it. But that’s just my opinion. And I’m known to have an opinion, and you can quote that for sure: 25. Bam! Always.”

He bantered with McCarron after the quarterback praised the running back before recalling how he was still in high school when McCoy played college.

”Other than the age, you did pretty good,” he said to McCarron.

When it comes to age, McCoy has all but run out of contemporaries to pass. His 10,092 yards rushing rank third among active running backs, behind only Frank Gore (14,026) and Adrian Peterson (12,276), and 29th on the career list.

What particularly stands out has been McCoy’s consistency. He’s among only 15 players to top 1,100 yards from scrimmage in eight straight seasons, according to Pro Football Reference.

McCoy was wowed when informed the list includes his idol Barry Sanders Rick Leonard Color Rush Jersey , who topped 1,100 yards in 10 straight seasons, and that he’s tied with Bills’ Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas.

”Thurman has eight? Well, I’m going to get nine this year,” said McCoy, who has befriended Thomas since arriving in Buffalo.

After a brief pause, McCoy added: ”But Thurman’s better than I am.”

NOTES: Allen earned his first opportunity to practice with the starters after spending the team’s 10 voluntary spring sessions working with the third-string offense. … LB Matt Milano did not practice because of a hamstring injury.

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The Washington Nationals‘ bats finally came alive Friday night. They hope that offense shows up again Saturday as the Nationals attempt to win two straight games for the first time in more than three weeks.

After a 17-7 rout on Friday night, the Nationals can pull even with the Philadelphia Phillies for second place in the National League East with a win Saturday at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

Washington hit seven home runs against the Phillies on Friday, including two by rookie Juan Soto and the 20th of the season from Bryce Harper. The team scored 17 runs on 18 hits in the win after combining for three runs on 12 hits in its previous three games.

The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the Nationals, who are 9-15 in June and have not won consecutive games since June 5-6. Still, they are 42-38 on the season and one game behind the Phillies in the division.

Right-hander Vince Velasquez (5-8, 4.69 ERA) will try to keep the Phillies in second place on Saturday.

With one exception, Velasquez has been reliable for the Phillies over the last two months. The hard-throwing righty has allowed fewer than three earned runs in seven of his last 10 starts. He allowed 10 runs in 3 2/3 innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on June 8 but has a 2.73 ERA in his other nine starts dating back to May 5.

Velasquez, who averages 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings Clive Walford Color Rush Jersey , had seven strikeouts in six innings against the Yankees on Monday. He gave up two runs on three hits and four walks in the outing and took the loss as the Phillies’ offense struggled in the 4-2 defeat.

“I had a couple walks here and there, and I had to pitch around some guys,” Velasquez told reporters after the game. “It’s a tough lineup to face.”

Saturday’s start will be Velasquez’s sixth in his career against Washington. He is 2-2 with a 5.33 ERA and 1.333 WHIP in his first five starts. This season, Velasquez held the Nationals to one run on one hit and four walks over five innings in a May 5 start in which he got the win.

Jeremy Hellickson is expected to be activated off the disabled list and make the Saturday start for the Nationals. Hellickson (2-0, 2.28) strained his right hamstring in a June 3 start and has not pitched since.

He made a rehab start for Class A Potomac last Sunday and gave up 11 runs in 4 2/3 innings. But he said he felt healthy after the outing.

“Physically, I felt fine,” Hellickson told the Washington Post last week. “I mean, obviously not how I wanted it to go, but I felt fine. Felt my stuff was pretty good. Just command was a little shaky, but (my) hammy was 100 percent.”

Hellickson was solid before the injury. He posted a 1.30 ERA and .548 opponent OPS in five starts during May, and the Nationals won each of those outings.

Hellickson pitched for the Phillies in the 2016 and 2017 seasons. In his only career start against Philadelphia, Hellickson did not allow an earned run in eight innings while with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2015 season.

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