Philadelphia Eagles: Is a reunion with Sam Bradford in the cards?

If Nick Foles gets traded this offseason, could the Philadelphia Eagles facilitate a reunite with oft-injured enigma Sam Bradford?

In case you haven’t heard, the Philadelphia Eagles may be trading Super Bowl 52 MVP Nick Foles this offseason.

Or maybe they won’t, who knows?

But if Foles does leave the City of Brotherly Love for greener pastures and just compensation, one question that’s seldom asked is who will serve as the teams backup quarterback behind Carson Wentz, who may not even be ready to play in Week 1 due to his December ACL Tear?

More from Philadelphia Eagles

I mean sure, the team has Nate Sudfield, a 2016 sixth-round pick out of Indiana, but he’s only appeared in one game so far as a pro. While he did have his moments in relief of Foles in the Eagles Week 17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, does Howie Roseman and company really trust a player who’s attempted only 23 professional passes to take the keys to the offense in a regular season game if Wentz isn’t ready to go?

I’d hope not.

Well, I guess the team could always just sign a veteran signal caller on a cost-controlled contract to serve as Wentz’s longterm backup, like they did with Foles and Chase Daniel before him, but with the team currently $10 million over the cap and counting, and Wentz on track to receive a record-breaking contract in a few seasons, this too may prove hard to fit into the plans.

And before anyone asks, no, the Eagles aren’t going to draft a quarterback in 2017, even though they did meet with Lamar Jackson at the combine. With only six picks in the draft, and only one in the top 120, if the team were to draft a quarterback, it would be a player like J.T. Barrett or Nic Shimonek in the sixth round, and neither players is better equipped to step on the field Week 1 than Sudfield.

No, if the Eagles are going to continue to roll without Wentz in the preseason, and remain competitive should he miss more time, they need a player who can be a spot starter, and just so happens to also know the Eagles’ system.

Someone like Sam Bradford.

Yeah, you read that correctly.

After being traded to the Minnesota Vikings to replace Teddy Bridgewater, Bradford quickly highlighted why he’s one of the leagues biggest enigmas. On one hand, when healthy, Bradford played some of the best football of his career, completing 427 of his 595 pass attempts for 4259 yards and 27 touchdowns.

But in typical Bradford fashion, he just couldn’t stay on the field. After appearing in 15 games in 2016, his most appearances in a season since 2012, Bradford appeared in just two games for the Vikings in 2017 and leading the way for Foles’ former teammate Case Keenum to have a breakup season.

And in a weird twist of fate, neither player may be back in Minnesota next season.

Even though Keenum lead the Vikings to an NFC North-leading 13-3 record, and a spot in the NFC Championship game, Mike Zimmer and company have reportedly become enchanted with former Washington Redskins‘ quarterback Kirk Cousins and will attempt to sign him in free agency, with Keenum serving as their backup plan.

So what does that make Bradford then? Their third choice? And what about Bridgewater, himself a former first-round pick who’s coming off of a gruesome leg injury that almost resulted in an amputation?

Needless to say, it appears as though Bradford will be looking for work elsewhere next season, with very few “ideal” situations available for the eighth year quarterback.

Unless Bradford is willing to serve as a bridge quarterback for a team drafting their potential future franchise quarterback in 2018, it seems incredibly unlikely that he’ll find a job with security and consistent playing time, and may be forced to transition into a backup role moving forward. Without a Foles-esque situation where a championship caliber team loses their star mere weeks before a playoff run, it’s going to be tough for Bradford to find a role that gits him on the field, and allows him to rehab his image for a future starting opportunity,

Which brings us to Philly.

While Wentz is expected to play in 2018, hopefully in all 16 regular season games, he will surely be absent for the entire offseason, including the preseason, and the team will need someone to take the reigns and log some serious minutes running the first-team offense.

A role that Bradford could excel in.

I mean think about it, Bradford already has an entire offseason under his belt in Doug Pederson‘s offense, and after watching the quarterback guru transform Foles from a journeyman backup on his third team in as many years into the league’s biggest trade chip, the former first overall pick may see Philly as an opportunity to relaunch his career on a similar trajectory.

Though Bradford is obviously very talented, he was the first overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, after all, he simply hasn’t been able to prove that he can play consistently and that’s going to hurt his stock going into free agency. While he’s obviously going to look long and hard for a starting job next season, returning to Philly on a one-year, veteran minimum deal may be his best opportunity to return to the marquee player he once was.

And for the Eagles? Bradford simply gives the team a proven starter who knows Pederson’s system and can admirably fill Wentz’s shoes until he’s healthy enough to play. Though he is injury prone, Bradford has played exceptionally well when healthy, and much like Foles has a pension for completing passes, owning a completion percentage of 72 over the last two seasons.

Next: Rashaad Penny could be a four-down back for the Eagles

Sure, the team may just decide to stick with Sudfield, as they’ve recently described him as a potential starting caliber quarterback, bringing back Bradford could give both of the team’s third-year quarterbacks an opportunity to continue to develop without having to be rushed onto the field before they’re ready. Simply put, if the Philadelphia Eagles do decide to trade away Philly folk hero Nick Foles this offseason, Sam Bradford could be a wonderful backup plan.

Home/Philadelphia Eagles