Adrian Fedkiw
Doug Pederson and Howie Roseman have had Sam Bradford’s back all offseason. The starting quarterback job is his and there’s seemingly nobody that could overtake him, barring injury.
Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich doesn’t quite see it that way.
Reich joined the WIP Morning Show on Wednesday to discuss Bradford and rookie quarterback Carson Wentz. So what did he have to say when asked if Bradford is the clear-cut number one quarterback?
“No, that’s probably not the right impression,” Reich said. “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 it’s chaos. So, if you’re the head coach you got to 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 the furthest thing from the truth. I don’t see the problem with creating order and competition at the same time.”
Well said, all of that makes sense.
Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s philosophy of handling a rookie quarterback is different than Pederson. The first-year head coach isn’t in any rush to trot to rookie out there, but Schwartz explained what his advice would be about handling Wentz during his press conference Tuesday.
“Don’t judge him on something else,” he said. “And also don’t pre-determine the result of the race. Let him go play. Don’t put extra pressure on him.”
Schwartz then talked about his prior experience with Matthew Stafford while he was the head coach in Detroit.
“I can’t speak for Carson. We have enough worries on defense right now. I think when we drafted Stafford, we just let him play. Was he our best quarterback? Was he ready? Unfortunately, he got hurt both his first and second year by holding the ball too long. I think he had the command and he would have been ready to play had it not been for those injuries,” he said.
Reich admitted he didn’t have a role in the selection of the North Dakota State product, but had nothing but great things to say about him.
“I thought he was a guy that had all the tools,” Reich said. “To me if you are going to move up to that position, you want a guy not only be a great player, a great unique player, but physically you have to be elite.”
Reich continued, praising Wentz’s intangibles.
“He’s got a contagious personality, he’s a winner, incredibly smart. For a young guy, about as smart as you could be. Showed all the right signs in every way … Everything we’ve seen on tape, we’re seeing on the practice field,” he said.
The preseason can’t come soon enough, can’t wait to see what the kid can do!
Check out what Reich had to say below.