Arrest won’t keep Bradham away from Eagles camp
Taking a cue from the Reid days, Eagles will come out hitting this weekend
PHILADELPHIA >> Coach Doug Pederson said he had “a great conversation” with veteran linebacker Nigel Bradham, arrested Monday in Miami Beach in the assault of a hotel worker. Bradham is in Philadelphia and allowed to participate in the first full-squad practice of Eagles training camp.
“Right now, until we get further information from the authorities in South Florida and Dom (DiSandro) and the people here, I just felt like don’t punish him for being here,” Pederson said Wednesday. “Let him practice, let him report, let him go through physicals, conditioning tests, all of that and we’ll see what happens in a few days.”
Forget about Pederson making a serious statement. Whatever disciplinary action he takes, it’s unlikely to cost Bradham his job.
“I don’t foresee anything like that, no,” Pederson replied.
Bradham has been charged with suspicion of battery/aggravated assault. The police report stated he “struck the victim in the nose with a closed fist, causing the victim to fall to the ground.”
The police report also said there was no provocation.
An NFL spokesman said the league is investigating Bradham’s arrest. If Bradham is found to have violated the league’s personal conduct policy,
he faces discipline.
DiSandro, the Eagles’ vice president of team security, is investigating the matter for the Birds.
“I can’t speculate,” Pederson said. “It’s an ongoing investigation. But I did have a great conversation with (Bradham) last night, laid out my expectations
for him. And again those are private conversations. I’m not going to get into a bunch of detail on that. He’s obviously humbled by it and he understands the situation and the magnitude. Until we get further details from the authorities we can’t speculate anymore.”
Bradham reportedly was among a group of six people who argued with a hotel worker about an umbrella they paid for, the confrontation turning physical, per reports. The group left the scene.
Bradham reportedly paid for the umbrella with a credit card.
The Eagles already were short of depth at linebacker before Bradham’s arrest. They cut linebacker Travis Long Wednesday and likely will add a linebacker, according to Pederson.
Bradham (6-2, 241) is tentatively penciled in as the starting strong side linebacker in a corps lacking experience beyond veteran Najee Goode. Pederson is optimistic that undrafted rookie free agent Joe Walker (6-2, 246, Oregon) can help at the position.
Bradham is the second Eagles player to have a brush with authorities over the offseason. In May, wide receiver Nelson Agholor was accused of assaulting a dancer at a strip club, although the Philadelphia district attorney decided there wasn’t enough evidence to bring charges.
In April, Pederson said he outlined the expectations he had for his players on and off the field at their first meeting together.
“You’ve got to make smart decisions,” Pederson said. “We’re in a high-profile business and being in the city of Philadelphia, things get magnified a little bit. You’ve just got to be smart and careful and make good choices. Obviously, we all suffer from our bad choices, our bad decisions and the consequences of that. I address the team quite often, actually, on making those. I addressed the rookies just the other night and tonight’s meeting, we’ll have the same similar message.”
Bradham, 26, was signed to a two-year, $7 million contract with a $1.5 million signing bonus. He’s due $2 million in base pay this season. He spent his entire fouryear NFL career with the Buffalo Bills, who took him off the board in the fourth round of the 2012 draft. His best year was in 2014, when he notched 2½ of his 3½ career sacks.