Bradford’s back as Eagles open camp
Sheds the knee brace, impresses in first practice
PHILADELPHIA >> Sam Bradford is back.
The only clue to his chronic injury past Sunday was the sleeve on his left knee. Then again it was a sleeve, not a knee brace.
To watch Bradford, who moved seamlessly, lined the offense up correctly and made all the throws and then some, was to wonder if the guy really did shred his left ACL twice in less than two years.
That Chip Kelly and the Eagles gave him the green light to hit the field running without a brace spoke volumes of his rehab.
“I just felt like it got to the point where I didn’t need it,” Bradford said. “I was doing a lot of things without the brace and it felt fine. And I felt like some times during the OTAs, the brace restricted me a little bit. And so the doctors, I talked to them yesterday about it and they were cool with it, so we’re going to go without one.”
Watching Bradford spit the ball out is like watching Tom Brady run a practice. And that is a treat. There is a purpose to every throw. Not a motion is wasted. The execution appears effortless.
“That’s why I see,” Eagles
linebacker Brandon Graham said. “But I don’t want to speak on him too much because I just want him to be a surprise to everybody.”
Consider the surprise out. While it was only one practice, it wasn’t that long ago there was concern whether Bradford, the first overall pick in the 2010 draft, would be healthy enough to start camp. Barring setbacks you can look for him in the preseason.
“He passed the conditioning test,” Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said. “We don’t have any restrictions in talking to the trainers
and doctors on him right now. But that doesn’t mean two days from now, if something flares up, we’ll have to handle it. But right now we are not anticipating a situation where we say, ‘ Hey, he is going to practice today and tomorrow we’ll take him off.’ Right now he’s going to go until we see how his knee responds. When you talk to him, he feels really confident. I think he’s right on track to where he wanted to be.”
One of the few ill-fated throws Bradford made Sunday went to Nolan Carroll, who is battling for the starting cornerback job. Bradford throws the ball to places where receivers can actually do something with it. The receivers simply have
to adjust to the zip on it, as it spirals in on them suddenly.
“I think each day that I’m out here I’ll get more comfortable,” Bradford said. “I think in the past six weeks, from the time that we broke OTAs until we started, I put in a lot of work, and I think from the process and the work during that time … I trust it now. The things that I did during that period are the things that are required on the football field. I’m sure once we get into preseason games and it’s real, I’m sure that will be another step. But right now I feel good with everything.”
Good was an understatement. Bradford felt comfortable enough with his
showing to brag about running the zone read.
“You guys might even see me pull one, run it up the middle,” he said.
If Bradford still is feeling it in six weeks he can do the keeper in the regular season opener Sept. 14 in Atlanta.
“Barring any major setbacks, I feel great about that,” said Bradford who called the first practice “a big step.
“Like I said, it’s been almost a year since I’ve been on the field, full speed, playing football,” Bradford said. “So to just get out there and play ball and know that my knee can do it, I think that it was a really big first step and first day today.” Sam Bradford is back. It’s as if he never left.