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http://mmqb.si.com/2015/07/02/sam-bradford-philadelphia-eagles-chip-kelly-nfl-the-mmqb-100/
Matt Rourke/AP
No. 23: Sam Bradford
A one-year fallback option for Chip Kelly, or a fallen star about to realize his potential? If Sam Bradford is ever going to re-establish himself as a franchise quarterback, this season, in this system, is the perfect opportunity
By Andy Benoit
A March 12 tweet from The Onion: “The trade for Sam Bradford proves the Eagles aren’t afraid of shaking up their injury report.”
Bradford, the first overall pick of the 2010 draft, has missed 31 games over the last four years, including 25 over the last two years with two different tears of his left ACL. And so NFL observers gaped when the Eagles acquired him in exchange for, essentially, 26-year-old quarterback Nick Foles and a 2016 second-round pick. With Bradford still rehabbing his knee at the time, the trade, in some ways, equated to Philly paying above blue book price for a car that’s in the shop.
Suspicions quickly arose that Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, who had recently taken full roster control from GM Howie Roseman, was making the first in what would be a series of moves to climb up from No. 20 to No. 2 in the draft to select Marcus Mariota. Stylistically, it goes without saying that the former Oregon QB is perfect for Kelly’s system—a system in which, Kelly, ideally, would feature 40-45 rushing attempts a game.
Though the Eagles have ranked first and ninth in total rushing over the last two seasons, we’ve yet to see the full scope of Kelly’s ground attack. (Trading LeSean McCoy and releasing guard Evan Mathis reiterate just how far Kelly feels the Eagles are from having the type of ground game he actually wants.) Regardless of what Kelly says publicly, quarterback mobility is a significant facet of his scheme. That mobility brings another dimension to the read-option game, which, in Kelly’s scheme, at times plays off not just the usual unblocked defensive end but also off an unblocked defensive tackle.
There is a world of difference there. A defensive end lines up several yards away from the quarterback; a defensive tackle lines up almost within arm’s reach of the QB. A quarterback who can’t consistently run away from unblocked defensive tackles can’t run the full scope of Kelly’s option-based attack. Bradford is quicker and more athletic than the lumbering Foles, but he’s no Mariota.
In early May, Kelly acknowledged that Philly was interested in Tennessee’s No. 2 pick, telling NFL Network: “We examined it. I would say we were not very close, in terms of the price that was being asked. I used the analogy the other day that we drove into a very nice neighborhood and saw an unbelievable house, but when we found out the price of the house we stayed in the car, never even got out of the car.”
And so, sticking with Kelly’s analogy, the Eagles will settle for their fallback house. With his quicker release and tighter throwing motion, Bradford, stylistically, is more fit for Kelly’s passing game than Foles was. And if injuries strike again, the Eagles learned last season they can tread water with Mark Sanchez, who re-signed days before the Bradford trade.
Between now and Labor Day, you’ll probably hear Kelly say about a dozen times that Bradford is the guy the Eagles wanted all along. But if that’s true in its purest sense, the Eagles would sign Bradford to a long-term contract now, while his market value at its nadir. Basically, they are gambling with a wait-and-see approach on Bradford, who is making $12.985 million in this, the final year of his rookie contract. A successful 2015 season could add $10-20 million in guarantees to Bradford’s price tag next year. If he fails, he’ll be a free agent in 2016 and look for work as a backup.
Bradford is lucky to be in this position. Had the Rams been unable to trade him, they may have simply released him, leaving some other team to sign him for a fraction of $12.985 million. And if the Rams had kept Bradford, they would have asked him to take a pay cut and be the blandest kind of game-manager in their old-school ground-and-pound offense.
Instead, Bradford will direct-deposit $1.5 million-plus every two weeks and lead an offense that can make even the most average quarterback look great (see: Foles, circa 2013). Remember, Bradford became the No. 1 pick in 2010 by thriving in an Oklahoma spread system that, just like Kelly’s, asked the quarterback to get the ball out quickly. Getting the ball out quickly stems from either diagnosing the defense before the snap, or from running plays in which the quarterback’s read is defined by the play design (bubble screens, quick slants, etc.).
In Philly, where the fast tempo leaves little time for pre-snap diagnostics, it’s all about defined reads. The system, especially in the aerial department, is the most simplistic in pro football. (How do you think all 11 Eagles are always able to play so fast?) Kelly’s playbook has essentially seven or eight total plays. But there’s an illusion of complexity because those plays are run out of many different formations. Any quarterback, particularly one with Bradford’s quick release, has a chance to prosper just by going through the correct motions.
We’ll learn two things about Bradford in 2015: (1) whether the 27-year-old’s once-promising career can ever get off the ground, and (2) whether Kelly can be convinced—truly convinced—that his system can function satisfactorily without a mobile quarterback. It’s this second item that has the rest of the NFL watching with bated breath. Kelly’s M.O. is the trendiest in football right now. His concepts are being copied more than anyone’s. If Bradford recognizes his full potential here, the copycatting will intensify. Maybe even to the degree of a league-wide revolution.
Matt Rourke/AP
No. 23: Sam Bradford
A one-year fallback option for Chip Kelly, or a fallen star about to realize his potential? If Sam Bradford is ever going to re-establish himself as a franchise quarterback, this season, in this system, is the perfect opportunity
By Andy Benoit
A March 12 tweet from The Onion: “The trade for Sam Bradford proves the Eagles aren’t afraid of shaking up their injury report.”
Bradford, the first overall pick of the 2010 draft, has missed 31 games over the last four years, including 25 over the last two years with two different tears of his left ACL. And so NFL observers gaped when the Eagles acquired him in exchange for, essentially, 26-year-old quarterback Nick Foles and a 2016 second-round pick. With Bradford still rehabbing his knee at the time, the trade, in some ways, equated to Philly paying above blue book price for a car that’s in the shop.
Suspicions quickly arose that Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, who had recently taken full roster control from GM Howie Roseman, was making the first in what would be a series of moves to climb up from No. 20 to No. 2 in the draft to select Marcus Mariota. Stylistically, it goes without saying that the former Oregon QB is perfect for Kelly’s system—a system in which, Kelly, ideally, would feature 40-45 rushing attempts a game.
Though the Eagles have ranked first and ninth in total rushing over the last two seasons, we’ve yet to see the full scope of Kelly’s ground attack. (Trading LeSean McCoy and releasing guard Evan Mathis reiterate just how far Kelly feels the Eagles are from having the type of ground game he actually wants.) Regardless of what Kelly says publicly, quarterback mobility is a significant facet of his scheme. That mobility brings another dimension to the read-option game, which, in Kelly’s scheme, at times plays off not just the usual unblocked defensive end but also off an unblocked defensive tackle.
There is a world of difference there. A defensive end lines up several yards away from the quarterback; a defensive tackle lines up almost within arm’s reach of the QB. A quarterback who can’t consistently run away from unblocked defensive tackles can’t run the full scope of Kelly’s option-based attack. Bradford is quicker and more athletic than the lumbering Foles, but he’s no Mariota.
In early May, Kelly acknowledged that Philly was interested in Tennessee’s No. 2 pick, telling NFL Network: “We examined it. I would say we were not very close, in terms of the price that was being asked. I used the analogy the other day that we drove into a very nice neighborhood and saw an unbelievable house, but when we found out the price of the house we stayed in the car, never even got out of the car.”
And so, sticking with Kelly’s analogy, the Eagles will settle for their fallback house. With his quicker release and tighter throwing motion, Bradford, stylistically, is more fit for Kelly’s passing game than Foles was. And if injuries strike again, the Eagles learned last season they can tread water with Mark Sanchez, who re-signed days before the Bradford trade.
Between now and Labor Day, you’ll probably hear Kelly say about a dozen times that Bradford is the guy the Eagles wanted all along. But if that’s true in its purest sense, the Eagles would sign Bradford to a long-term contract now, while his market value at its nadir. Basically, they are gambling with a wait-and-see approach on Bradford, who is making $12.985 million in this, the final year of his rookie contract. A successful 2015 season could add $10-20 million in guarantees to Bradford’s price tag next year. If he fails, he’ll be a free agent in 2016 and look for work as a backup.
Bradford is lucky to be in this position. Had the Rams been unable to trade him, they may have simply released him, leaving some other team to sign him for a fraction of $12.985 million. And if the Rams had kept Bradford, they would have asked him to take a pay cut and be the blandest kind of game-manager in their old-school ground-and-pound offense.
Instead, Bradford will direct-deposit $1.5 million-plus every two weeks and lead an offense that can make even the most average quarterback look great (see: Foles, circa 2013). Remember, Bradford became the No. 1 pick in 2010 by thriving in an Oklahoma spread system that, just like Kelly’s, asked the quarterback to get the ball out quickly. Getting the ball out quickly stems from either diagnosing the defense before the snap, or from running plays in which the quarterback’s read is defined by the play design (bubble screens, quick slants, etc.).
In Philly, where the fast tempo leaves little time for pre-snap diagnostics, it’s all about defined reads. The system, especially in the aerial department, is the most simplistic in pro football. (How do you think all 11 Eagles are always able to play so fast?) Kelly’s playbook has essentially seven or eight total plays. But there’s an illusion of complexity because those plays are run out of many different formations. Any quarterback, particularly one with Bradford’s quick release, has a chance to prosper just by going through the correct motions.
We’ll learn two things about Bradford in 2015: (1) whether the 27-year-old’s once-promising career can ever get off the ground, and (2) whether Kelly can be convinced—truly convinced—that his system can function satisfactorily without a mobile quarterback. It’s this second item that has the rest of the NFL watching with bated breath. Kelly’s M.O. is the trendiest in football right now. His concepts are being copied more than anyone’s. If Bradford recognizes his full potential here, the copycatting will intensify. Maybe even to the degree of a league-wide revolution.
