Nick Piccone
Imagine being an NFL player that has gone through the entirety of training camp and all four preseason games knowing that your quarterback will be Sam Bradford. That same Sam Bradford who had an OK season in 2015 under Chip Kelly despite his many limits in the offense, who looked really good in the preseason [again], and who was set to lead the Eagles behind center in Week 1 of the 2016 season next week.
And now, your teammate is gone. He’s been traded like he’s yesterday’s news. His heir apparent is a rookie – because we know damn well there’s no reason to start Chase Daniel unless Carson Wentz is unhealthy – and now it seems like the future is now, instead of waiting another year. There’s no veteran to feel comfortable about behind center anymore. Apparently that didn’t sit too well with Malcolm Jenkins, who was with Bleacher Report’s Adam Lefkoe today when the news broke of Sam Bradford’s trade. According to Lefkoe – who was determined to let us all know he wasn’t putting any words in Jenkins’ mouth – it seemed like Jenkins wasn’t feeling it. It seemed more like a move for the future than to win now. He didn’t seem to care about the future draft picks. Listen to Lefkoe explain in a segment on today’s special Philly Sports Talk episode.
I can’t imagine NFL players go into a season – where we know anything can happen week-to-week regardless of talent level among teams – thinking they won’t play in January and February. That has to be the goal regardless of whether the Eagles had Carson Wentz waiting in the wings behind Sam Bradford or if Wentz was the Week 1 starter if Bradford was still here.
But, like what was said in the video above, Jenkins was a huge Bradford guy. That was his quarterback, man. So I can imagine him being taken aback by the trade, especially with the timing, when everyone, including us, were being told the Eagles wanted to remain competitive while also an eye to the future after drafting Wentz.
To Ray Didinger’s point, the strength of the team was always going to be the defense this season. At least that’s how it’s looked at going into the season. Nobody thought Bradford would be the guy to carry the Eagles into the promised land. Unless, you know, the players on the team did.
I wonder how many players think the team deceived them? I’m sure there are some. If Jenkins’ reaction to the news is legit, he probably felt somewhat deceived. But, in the long run, I think it’ll be a good thing.
There’s also this…
Howie said he spoke privately to a lot of veterans about Wentz and they all said he's ready. "It made us feel more comfortable to do this."
— Reuben Frank (@RoobCSN) September 3, 2016
… so it looks like Roseman did his homework before pulling the trigger.
You guys try wayyyyyy too hard.