The Philadelphia Eagles took a big risk with Sam Bradford. When Chip Kelly traded for the quarterback a lot of eyebrows were raised considering he is coming off back-to-back ACL injuries. Bradford has been an unknown entity over the past two years considering he has barely played. However, the Eagles stressed their confidence in his ability to bounce back and that trust might just begin to pay off.
According to NJ.com, Bradford is beginning to look like a real quarterback during team OTAs. The starter has been participating in 7-on-7 drills while he begins to show mobility. The biggest thing is Bradford stressing his knee feels fine at the end of the day.
"We are going to take it day-by-day (and) keep progressing," Bradford said, via PhillyVoice.com. "It's trending in the right direction. I've increased the workload the past couple of weeks and it's continued to feel great afterwards."
Bradford is the expected starter for 2015, but Mark Sanchez plans on challenging him on that effort. According to Mark Eckel of NJ.com, Sanchez has reported to OTAs looking much improved from last year. The quarterback re-signed with the Eagles in free agency under the assumption that he would contend for the starting spot. It was take a real steep fall from Bradford to put Sanchez under center for Week 1, but his progress could greatly impact the future of the Eagles.
"(Kelly) didn't have to persuade me," Sanchez said, via FOX Sports. "He didn't have to say anything special. It was just, basically, 'Hey, you can compete just like everybody else.' Whether that was Nick Foles or, now, Sam and Tim (Tebow) and Matt (Barkley) ... it didn't really matter. I knew there would be competition coming in."
Sanchez is signed through next season, Bradford is not. The quarterback was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles as he prepares to enter the final year of his contract. According to ESPN, the Eagles have not truly begun negotiating contract extensions for Bradford. It was reported prior to the NFL Draft by NJ.com that Bradford wanted a no-trade clause in his deal which is highly unlikely considering his injury history. If Braford plays well this year then a contract extension is a no-brainer.
If Sanchez plays well, he could be the quarterback that becomes trade bait rather than Matt Barkley who is battling with Tim Tebow. Sanchez originally signed with the Eagles to improve his stock as a quarterback. The New York Jets stint saw Sanchez fall from grace and let Chip Kelly help him get back on his feet. As Sanchez continues to show what he can truly do, the backup could be a trade the Eagles seek to get more draft picks for next year.