The quarterback position for the Philadelphia Eagles will continue to come under the spotlight all throughout training camp as many wonder just how well the Sam Bradford experiment will work out. The Eagles took a big gamble giving up a lot to acquire a quarterback coming off of back-to-back ACL tears. While Bradford is expected to be the starter for the season, will he be healthy come Week 1 of the season?
According to ESPN's John Clayton there is a concern that Bradford is not healthy and will still be recovering come Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills. Clayton writes that Bradford's recovery has been slow as the Eagles are taking every precaution to make sure he is at full strength when he takes the field for the first time, but that might take longer than originally assumed. Bradford has stressed to the media that his goal is to be fully ready come training camp, but Clayton believes it could be Mark Sanchez under center first.
The question becomes what happens if Bradford is not healthy come Week 1 and Sanchez steps in and wins the game. Head coach Chip Kelly has displayed the idea of keeping with the hot hand and could be inclined to keep Sanchez in. At the moment, Sanchez has the most experience in Kelly's offense along with chemistry with the wide receivers. He could have a leg up over the former top draft pick. Clayton writes that there will be a battle for the top spot between the two quarterbacks regardless of how much people think Bradford is locked in as the starter.
Bradford is entering a very critical contract season. The past two years have been forgettable for the quarterback and he is in need of proving himself. After being the No.1 overall draft pick, Bradford has yet to take that leap into the next level like Russell Wilson and Andrew Luck did. Injuries have played a factor and if Bradford misses any more football due to injuries, he could be saying goodbye to a nice contract.
The Eagles have the pieces to help the quarterback out. DeMarco Murray is expected to pick up right where he left off with the Dallas Cowboys while Miles Austin and Nelson Agholor were added to the wide receiver rotation. Zach Ertz is reportedly looking more elite by the day as he praises the arm strength of Bradford over Sanchez. Position battles will be running wild during Eagles training camp, but the one everyone will stay focused on is at the quarterback position.
