No turnovers aside, Bradford needs to play better than this

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Of all the ways to complete the following phrase - "The Eagles won, but . . ." - the most obvious and troubling was, "Sam Bradford struggled again."

There will be harsher language used by some to describe the quarterback's performance in the Eagles' scrappy 24-17 win over the New York Jets on Sunday. Indeed, Bradford wasn't sharp. He was behind, short or over receivers all game.

But he didn't commit a turnover against one of the best defenses in the NFL. Considering the Jets forced 10 in the first two weeks, and Eagles quarterbacks accounted for the most turnovers in the league last year, Bradford's sure handedness can't be overstated.

It wasn't pretty by any measure. He completed just 14 of 28 passes for 118 yards. He averaged just 4.2 yards per pass attempt. And perhaps, most important, he still doesn't appear capable of compensating for run game inefficiency.

"They're a good defense. I thought that they matched up with us well today," Bradford said. "I missed a few throws and I think we had a few drops. There were a couple of things on a couple of different drives that set us back, but like I said, I don't think there was anything major."

Turnovers would have been major. He had four interceptions in the first two games. Two were late-game deflections, but the first two were costly. Bradford threw a pick that led to seven points against the Falcons and he tossed one in the end zone that took at least three points off the board against the Cowboys.

The Jets intercepted Colts quarterback Andrew Luck three times last week. Darrelle Revis had two. When the cornerback was asked about the Eagles offense after the game, he focused on something the Jets probably thought they could exploit.

"Sam Bradford did a great job on not turning over the ball," Revis said.

He did not, however, do a great job of throwing the ball. Bradford had a total of two passes that could be called great. They came on the same drive in the second quarter. The first occurred when Bradford naturally rolled right out of the pocket and threw to tight end Zach Ertz for a 21-yard completion.

The second came five plays later when Bradford floated a 23-yard touchdown strike to Ryan Mathews on a wheel route.

"He kept battling just like everybody else," Eagles coach Chip Kelly said. "I'm sure there's probably a couple of throws he'd like back."

But that was it, and coming on the heels of a lackluster effort against Dallas, and a two-faced performance in Atlanta, it's fair to wonder if Bradford can be nothing more than a game manager.

The run game was resurrected for a half, and the defense is improved, but neither unit can be counted on to deliver on a consistent basis. The passing game will have to be more productive if this team is to make a playoff run in a depleted NFC East.

Bradford has still yet to go deep. The one time he tried for Nelson Agholor beyond 25 yards he threw it where only Inspector Gadget could have reached. But it wasn't as if he had receivers running free all day. In fact, the downfield passing game has been dormant for three games.

Revis is one of the best man-to-man corners in the game, but Antonio Cromartie is a step slow at this point in his career. Kelly said that the Jets were adding a defender in the box in the second half to stop the leading Eagles from running. But if that were the case shouldn't there have been opportunities through the air?

Other than Jordan Matthews (six catches for 49 yards), there wasn't an Eagles receiver with a reception. Bradford short-hopped Agholor on two other routes, threw behind and over Miles Austin on three and never went to an increasingly invisible Riley Cooper.

But can anyone consistently get open on the outside?

Who would have thought the running back wheel route would be the Eagles' top outside play this season? Darren Sproles had a 24-yard catch against the Falcons - he dropped another open wheel route vs. the Jets - and Mathews had his 23-yard score.

Mathews had two drops himself - although one was slightly behind him - and there were eight drops in the first two games. But Bradford, aside from the second half in Atlanta, hasn't been accurate. That is what's most perplexing. Fine, don't air it out, but can you at least hit Austin on an 8-yard slant on third down?

In his defense, Bradford is only three games into a new offense. As pointed out before, he doesn't have the option in this system to audible pre-snap like most NFL quarterbacks. And other than the first half on Sunday, he hasn't had a run game.

But the passing offense never looked this inept - with the exception of the Seahawks game last December - with Nick Foles and Mark Sanchez at quarterback. Of course, those two had a combined 28 turnovers last year.

Bradford had zero on Sunday and it was enough. The rest of his day won't get the job done more games than not.

jmclane@phillynews.com

@Jeff_McLane