Eagles like Bradford, but won't tip hand

MOBILE, Ala. - More kind words for Sam Bradford Tuesday, from new Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich, in his first remarks to reporters since taking the position last week, and again from team vice president Howie Roseman. No clear picture of exactly how much the Eagles feel they need Bradford, who can be an unrestricted free agent in March.

That isn't unusual, when there is a contract to be negotiated. Maybe the Eagles would make it clear by their words or actions if they had no interest in retaining Bradford. But if you do have interest, it's stupid to jack up the price by saying "we must have Sam Bradford." To say that, you'd have to be 100 percent ready to apply the franchise tag, and with a new coaching staff still evaluating last season's film, it's clear the Eagles aren't there yet on the tag, which can't be applied until Feb. 22 anyway.

If you aren't sure you're willing to apply the tag - which could cost $20 million or more, right off your 2016 salary cap, the cap not set yet, but maybe clocking in around $155 million - then you've declared you have to have a player you might not be able to retain.

So, no bold declarations. But more tea leaves to scrutinize, as the new Eagles regime watched the first day of Senior Bowl practices.

"Everything I know of Sam is extremely positive," said Reich, who was fired as the Chargers' offensive coordinator at the end of this season.

Reich confirmed that he and new Eagles coach Doug Pederson became friends as spring work QBs for the expansion Carolina Panthers in 1995, and that "working with Doug" was the main attraction of this job for him. Roseman opined that with Pederson and Reich both having played the position at the NFL level, this staff should be able to make a solid evaluation of where the Eagles need to go at quarterback.

"The observations that I've made, just from an ex-quarterback watching him play, seems like (Bradford has) a great understanding of the game," Reich said. "Our backup quarterback in San Diego (Kellen Clemens) played with Sam in St. Louis (from 2011-2013). I've heard him talk highly of Sam, as well. I think Sam is a very cerebral, high-I.Q. football guy, quarterback guy. I think he showed a lot of that as the year went on."

In San Diego, Reich had Philip Rivers, who was not just really talented but also very good at diagnosing what he saw at the line. Reich gave his quarterback quite a lot of latitude to change plays, something Bradford did not have under Chip Kelly's sideline-signal system.

"It's on a continuum. There are some guys that can handle more and some guys that can handle less. As a coach, as a staff, Doug and myself, you determine how much latitude you want to give a guy," Reich said. "When you get a thoroughbred, you want to let that thoroughbred run. But then at times, you need to pull back the reins. There's always that mix there. You certainly want to give a quarterback the freedom. It's very hard to create big plays in this league. So if you can prepare a guy, that he can help create a big play, put his teammates in position to make big plays, it really is advantageous to the whole team to give a guy the freedom to do that."

Pressed further on Bradford, Reich said: "We're still in the evaluation process . . . that decision will be made by people higher than me."

Roseman called Bradford "a very talented guy that obviously finished the season strong."

Roseman indicated that the postseason sessions with players about what they envisioned getting in a coach also touched on Bradford.

"Obviously we hear from his teammates, as we met with them, that they liked him as well," Roseman said. "That all kind of factors into it, but it's still early in the offseason, and so we've got a lot of decisions to make. That'll all be part of the process."

Part of the process began to unfold at the North team practice, which concluded just before Reich and Roseman spoke, at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. The guy in the spotlight this week is North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz, in his first work with and against big-time players, and Wentz was impressive, after checking in during Tuesday's weigh-in at just over 6-5 and 233 pounds. His throws were accurate and hard, his delivery quick and smooth.

Nobody knows yet how Wentz fits into the draft, if he would make sense for the Eagles at 13th overall. There is chatter here that the Dallas Cowboys, whose staff is coaching the North team, might take him fourth overall, which would be quite a thing for a Football Championship Subdivision QB who broke the wrist on his passing arm in October and wasn't even in the first-round conversation a month ago. But Dallas will get a great firsthand look at Wentz this week, on the field and in meetings.

If the Eagles do end up franchising Bradford, they would have him under contract only for one more season, so drafting a QB in the first round still wouldn't be out of the question.

Among those here without a job, trying to keep an iron in the NFL fire, is former Eagles player personnel chief Ed Marynowitz. He was fired along with Chip Kelly, after being chosen by Kelly from Howie Roseman's staff to run personnel last year. "I don't think you're ever surprised in this business," he said, when asked about his abrupt departure . . . Kelly isn't here, perhaps reflecting that he will not have a personnel role as coach in San Francisco . . . Roseman declined comment on the team's search for someone who will work with him in personnel. He is running the operation again, despite having played no role in evaluating prospects during the season. "We've got a great staff . . . Good evaluators, good people," Roseman said . . . Eagles sports science coordinator Shaun Huls confirmed that he remains with the team, which is expected to continue much of the Chip Kelly emphasis in that area . . . It's hard to figure why ex-Eagles offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur would take a job as the Vikings' tight ends coach, with money still owed to him by the Eagles, but the Vikes' offensive coordinator, Norv Turner, turns 64 in May. Lots of scuttlebutt that Shurmur will be Turner's successor in a year or two.

On Twitter: @LesBowen

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