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Much has been made this offseason about the work of Josh Rosen, more on that later, his ability to pick up an NFL offense and his readiness to play.
In all of that hoopla, Sam Bradford has seemed like a forgotten man.
To many, this is simply because there is not much excitement for Bradford to be the starter. Entering his ninth NFL season, the former first overall pick is with his fourth team, has played in double digit games in only five of his nine seasons and has never thrown for 4,000 yards, has a career high of 21 touchdowns and has never made the playoffs.
Yet, his team, his coaches and Bradford himself seem excited that this is the right time and the right fit with the Arizona Cardinals:
“Every day I am out there and I see Sam throw, he reminds me why he was the No. 1 pick in the draft,” General Manager Steve Keim said Tuesday morning on 98.7, Arizona’s Sports Station.
This was the unfortunate reality with Bradford though, the plan was always to take it slow for the 30 year old quarterback. Afterall, we are talking about someone who played in two games last year.
“When I got here, even before I got here and when I signed … we devised a plan,” Bradford said. “We have done a great job sticking to the plan and I think the plan has worked. My body feels really good right now.”
That’s always going to be the key with Bradford. He has played consistent football when on the field, but it is about making sure he can get on the field.
If he can, with Bradford’s high football IQ and Mike McCoy’s offensive scheme that caters to the football savants, you could see a career year for Bradford.
The problem is counting on Bradford to be available.
That’s why, despite the unlikeliness of being the starter, Rosen is the toast of the town.
For Bradford, that is probably okay:
“The big part is coming out of this phase feeling like I do right now, but like everyone, I’ve got work to do before training camp starts,” Bradford said. “I’ll be ready once we get back here in July.”