The Philadelphia Eagles have had a roller coaster offseason, centered mostly on their quarterback depth chart. Do they re-sign Sam Bradford, the former first-overall pick who they acquired prior to the 2015 season and who played well over the last seven games, particularly the final contest of the season when Chip Kelly's up-tempo attack was replaced by something a bit more traditional? Do they target a guy during the NFL's free agency period, shoring up the signal-caller position via a more cost-effective move? Or do they draft a Quarterback of the Future, potentially with a first-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft?
Yes, to all three it turns out.
And after last week's trade up to the second-overall pick and the admission by Eagles GM/not GM Howie Roseman that the team would be selecting a quarterback, presumably NDSU's Carson Wentz, Philadelphia suddenly had themselves a depth chart topped by Bradford, bolstered by Chase Daniel and filled out by a waiting-in-the-wings Wentz.
As the old NFL saying goes: if you have two (or three) quarterbacks, you don't have any. So the fact that the Eagles had three didn't really mean much other than more opportunity to find a long-term answer.
Except Bradford had to go and mess the whole thing up, requesting a trade by the team he apparently believes slighted him when they handed him a two-year deal worth up to $35 million and then went out and drafted his eventual (expected) replacement, expending draft resources that would otherwise have gone to shoring up areas of need in the process.
Only Bradford's probably not going to get his wish, it seems.
"I want to reiterate our support for Sam Bradford and go back to our statements last week - that Sam is our starting quarterback," Roseman said today. "His agent and Sam know how we feel about him. These workouts are voluntary. We look forward to seeing Sam again in the near future."
In the wake of the initial report of Bradford's demand, some Eagles beat writers tweeted that Bradford's agent Tom Condon isn't the kind of guy to request a trade if he doesn't think there's a deal there to be made.
So, going off the assumption that some team would be willing to trade for Bradford (the Eagles being willing to deal a guy they just paid $5.5 million to and would be on the hook for another $11 million for is another thing), who would want to give up assets in exchange for the former first-overall pick?
The New York Jets seem like a logical option. Unless they're not.
The Denver Broncos could use a starter. But why pay for Bradford when they've already acquired one former Eagle quarterback via trade and spent the offseason clearing cap space for a Von Miller mega-deal? Cleveland? Not these (Moneyball) Browns. The Bills? Rex Ryan apparently "loves" Tyrod Taylor. The Niners, where Kelly has taken over this offseason?
Really, it's hard to envision any team giving up much for a 28-year-old quarterback set to make at least $11 million over the next couple of seasons with a career rating of 81.
Bradford, who has yet to really earn anything at the NFL level, has put himself and the Eagles in a tough spot with his decision to demand a trade and, in the end, the outcome may not be to either side's liking.
Bradford hasn't done enough to warrant a power play like this. And like he said himself, what the team does in the draft is above his "pay grade."
He should show, eventually, and he should do whatever he can to keep whatever young quarterback the Eagles select on the bench. Otherwise, he's limiting his own value around the league and damaging himself in the eyes of those Philly fans still willing to believe in him.
All that being said, if a team does come calling with an offer - say, the Broncos miss out on Paxton Lynch in the first, watch Christian Hackenberg and Connor Cook disappear early in the second and are willing to offer their second-rounder for Bradford - the Eagles should give serious consideration to dumping a player who proved, with one self-aggrandizing move, that he's not long-term starter material.
Because keeping Bradford made sense when he was one of two (three if we're being generous) potential franchise quarterback options Roseman had collected for new head coach Doug Pederson. But after this trade demand, it's hard to suggest Bradford is anything but the middling stop-gap so many are already convinced he is.
