Philadelphia Eagles Quarterback Competition
Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson has constantly said that Sam Bradford is his starting quarterback this offseason. But last Wednesday, offensive coordinator Frank Reich didn’t sound like it’s a done deal. In fact, he sounded more like it’s an open competition.
On a radio appearance on WIP-FM, Reich was asked if Bradford was the clear-cut starter. And Reich said, “No, that’s probably not the right impression. I’ve been around this business a long time as a player and as a coach, and one of the things I’ve really come to appreciate is it’s not a contradiction to say you’ve got to have order.
“Because if you don’t order its chaos. So, if you’re the head coach you gotta come in and you’ve gotta establish order. There has to be organization, there has to be order, but the other thing that — as coaches — that you’ve got to establish is a culture of competition.
“This is one of the most competitive industries in the world and so, to say that there’s not competition, that’s just the furthest thing from the truth.”
From that, it just sounds like Reich doesn’t want to simply give it to Bradford, allowing 1st-round pick Carson Wentz to feel like he has a chance so he will go out and push Bradford for the job. Reich knows that it’s not a good idea to put limitations on a quarterback taken so high.
Who knows?
He just might be able to win the job if goes into the training camp feeling like he has a chance. But according to Matt Lombardo of NJ.com, this could be a real competition. That’s because at the start of Eagles’ OTAs, Wentz appeared to be ahead of Bradford in learning the offense.
Remember, neither Bradford nor Wentz have played in Pederson’s offense before. And Wentz played in a pro style offense so the veteran has no mental advantage here. Bradford is the official No. 1 right now but it looks as if Wentz has a better grasp of Pederson’s offense.
What if that’s still the case come late August, early September?
The Eagles will choose between an $18 million-man and No. 2 overall pick to be their quarterback!
Decisions, decisions!