Kelly, Bradford Happy With QB’s Debut

Sam Bradford’s Eagle career has spanned just one preseason drive that ended in a Ryan Mathews touchdown run. The former number one pick threw just five passes, completing three for 35 yards, but according to Chip Kelly, so far so good.

“I thought he looked good for [it] being his first time back out there,” Kelly said. “So I think we’ll get back in the film room and find out what his thought process was and where he was, but I think he’s happy just to get a chance to get back on the field and play football.

Bradford admitted after the game he was anxious prior to taking his first snaps in over a year, but after getting into a rhythm, he became comfortable in the offense and thinks this is another step towards him being back to 100 percent.

“I think tonight, I was able to go out there, I didn’t think about my knee once I got out there,” he said. “I think that was big for me and then being out there, taking some shots. Just to feel the speed of the game, feel the rush. We try to simulate it in practice, but it’s very hard when I’m off limits, so it was good just to feel the speed of the game out there tonight.”

The first shot Bradford took was a 15-yard penalty as Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs dove at Bradford’s surgically repaired knee after the quarterback had handed the ball off. Bradford said he let the All-Pro know he wasn’t pleased with the maneuver, but he also noted getting hit is one of the last hurdles he needs to clear in his rehab process.

As for the in-game feel, Bradford compared his role in the offense to that of a point guard, only needing to get the ball into the hands of his play-making weapons.

“It’s fun, I mean, it’s great for a quarterback when you look out there and you know everyone we got out there can make plays and it’s my job just to get them the ball,” Bradford said. “It reminds of the system I ran in college, it was kind of the same deal. The quarterback is almost like a point guard. You are just out there facilitating, just getting guys the ball and letting them make plays.”

When asked about his plan for Bradford next week when the Eagles take on the Packers, Kelly said nothing has been decided yet, joking that Bradford could come down with Legionnaires’ disease and not be able to play at all.

But bacterial diseases aside, Kelly thinks Bradford is on track for the start of the regular season.

“He’s progressing the way we logically had planned with him. What we did in the OTAs and what we did leading into this game,” he said. “We were not going to play him in the first game and [I] wanted [him] to really get his feet wet in terms of the training sessions that we had with the Ravens and then get him out here for 10 to 15 snaps. We got 14 in.”