Five Big-Picture Takeaways From Eagles Week 14 Win vs Bills

Dec 13, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford (7) drops back to pass against the Buffalo Bills in the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-USA TODAY Sports

2.) The Eagles Want to Win for Sam Bradford

When Mark Sanchez took over for an injured Nick Foles during the 2014 season, there seemed to be a peculiar injection of energy that does not normally occur when a team loses its starting quarterback. The charismatic Sanchez helped bring the Eagles to a 9-3 record, only to crash back down to Earth in Sanchez-esque fashion as the team missed the playoffs. While the 2014 season was considered a failure, the team didn’t seem to lose the wind in their sails when Foles went down. It is remarkable where Foles’s career has gone since that injury, but that should be of little concern to an Eagles team pushing for the playoffs.

When Sam Bradford went down with a concussion and left shoulder injury during the Eagles week 11 loss to the Dolphins, it’s almost as if the will of the team went down with him. Though he could not do anything about the forgettable showing by the defense against the Buccaneers and Lions, Sanchez was unable to put together anything close to a winning performance while Bradford was out. The Eagles looked lifeless when Bradford was out with an injury. Since he was cleared to return, one could argue the team has performed as well as they have all season.

Bradford’s first game back was unique in that he did not have to contribute much towards the Eagles building up a big lead over the Patriots. That said, he made a handful of key throws and did not turn the ball over. Sunday was a more traditional game for an NFL quarterback. Bradford had to orchestrate a handful of key drives against a ferocious Bills defense in order for the Eagles to come away with a win. Even having thrown an interception, which was more a result of a great play by the Buffalo defender than anything, Bradford delivered in a big way.

After the game, several players noted that Bradford delivered an impassioned speech before the game to inject some life into the locker room. Given that Bradford is a more soft-spoken individual, those commenting on Bradford’s speech felt his perception helped increase the impact.

"“Sam likes to lead by example, but sometimes we want to hear from our leader,” linebacker Brandon Graham said. “And now we’re hearing from him and, man, you just see a total different change. You know he’s out of his comfort zone and he’s giving you everything he’s got, so you can only respect that.”"

That Brandon Graham quote was one of several in a similar light courtesy of an article penned by Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Mike Sielski.

In weeks past, we’ve discussed the lack of an emotional leader as one of the shortcomings of this Eagles team. There are several players that lead by example, but seemingly no one that one could expect to fire up a team the way Bradford apparently has. If the quarterback, who is the single-most important player in the locker room, can serve that role it can prove to be that much more effective for a team trying to climb out of a hole. It isn’t a coincidence that the Eagles have won both games since Bradford returned. One could argue their opponents in both of those games were superior to those they played against in their three losses prior. The notion of Sam Bradford sticking around beyond 2015 continues to collect steam.