That Sam Bradford? The one who last preseason tore his ACL for a second time? The one who has played in only 49 of a potential 80 career games in the NFL because of injury? That Sam Bradford, who is only one of four No. 1 overall draft selections to never appear in a postseason game?
Yes, that Sam Bradford.
Not to worry, says Chip Kelly. He's done the numbers, and they all add up in the Eagles' favor.
"Our research in terms of dealing with guys with two ACLs, there's a 10-to-12 percent chance of re-injury," he said, via CSNPhilly.com. "So that's an 88-to-90 percent chance that they're going to be successful."
Granted, those two ACL tears gain a majority of the headlines, but they aren't the entirety of Bradford's injuries: his shoulders, a concussion in college, and a high ankle sprain that kept him out of much of his second pro season highlight his medical charts.
But Kelly doesn't see much of a difference between Bradford and any other quarterback.
"Everybody gets hurt in this game," he said.
"I don't know any quarterback who hasn't missed time. Tom Brady missed a year. Peyton Manning missed a year. Drew Brees has missed time. Nick Foles missed half a season. I mean, Aaron Rodgers has been hurt. I don't know if there's a quarterback in this league that hasn't been hurt.
"And if you haven't, you're probably young. That's the deal. You're going to get hurt in this game."
The post-injury accomplishments of those players is inspiring. Brady has since gone 73-23 and won his fourth Super Bowl. Manning is 38-10 with 131 touchdowns and 36 interceptions. And Drew Brees, since being let go by the Chargers ten seasons ago, has a Super Bowl of his own.
Granted, Bradford hasn't had that kind of success during his career. But one wonders, could he have with the talent the Rams consistently put (or failed to put) around him? The lack of wide receivers, running backs, and front protection can derail a quarterback's performance.
When given a chance, Bradford has the intangibles -- a quick release, excellent accuracy, good decision making, consistent character and work ethic, even mobility inside the pocket at times.
Something Chip Kelly believes he can still provide, given what he exchanged for him. Nick Foles had won 14 of 18 games for the Eagles before a broken shoulder at Houston ended his tenure there. He threw 40 touchdowns and only 12 interceptions for an offense that placed in the top-five the last two seasons.
That, in exchange for a player who averages 9.5 starts every season in the NFL.
But Kelly has said often that Bradford's injuries were relatively clean, and how there were no issues aside from the ACLs themselves.
"He didn't have any cartilage damage or anything like that," he said.
Which makes the injury question intruiging in one way. Would you rather have a quarterback who is injured often but not seriously, or seriously but not often? Brady, Manning, Brees, and Rodgers are clearly in the latter camp. Bradford is in the former.
"But that's a risk we were willing to take," Kelly said. "You know it's a risk, but it was a risk we were willing to take."
A $13 million risk that all but confirms the Eagles have no desire to see Sam Bradford sitting on a bench watching Mark Sanchez as the starter Week 1 in Atlanta.
@MrJamesParks
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