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Eagles QB Sam Bradford begins a pivotal season

Sam Bradford finally enjoyed a healthy summer. He was not sequestered in a training room rehabilitating a torn knee, like he did the previous two summers. An elusive break in his schedule allowed Bradford to spend time with teammates, focus on building the rest of his body - and even get married.

Sam Bradford finally enjoyed a healthy summer. He was not sequestered in a training room rehabilitating a torn knee, like he did the previous two summers. An elusive break in his schedule allowed Bradford to spend time with teammates, focus on building the rest of his body - and even get married.

Bradford begins his second training camp with the Eagles on Monday as the unequivocal starting quarterback, but with his career in Philadelphia likely expiring after this season. Yet all the attention devoted to Bradford's employment has overshadowed what's otherwise been the dominant story line of Bradford's career: His health. And for the first time since 2013, Bradford enters training camp without a concerned medical staff.

"Man, it's been awesome," Bradford said of a healthy offseason. "It's just a completely different mind-set. Last year, the past couple of years, I've had to worry about my knee. It's been more of a rehab mind-set. I haven't really been able to get in the weight room, to get stronger, to try to get better. More of the focus has been on my body, not on the football."

Bradford planned to focus his strength training this summer on his lower body. He admitted that his lower body was not at its pre-injury strength during the past two seasons. He said his strength is just now beginning to return to where it was before his first ACL tear in 2013.

Bradford was only a partial participant during the 2015 spring, with the team's hopes of getting him to full health for the summer. He entered training camp without restrictions, but Bradford still sat the preseason opener and endured unending attention about his knee's stability. Every hit seemed to be a measuring stick of his health, and despite his persistent proclamations that he was healthy, there was never unanimous conviction.

"I thought I would be ready," Bradford said about the 2015 training camp. "I don't think the way things had gone in the spring, I'm not sure I was 100 percent. I was telling myself I would be ready for it, but even some of the trainers . . . would tell you that they were probably a little skeptical after watching me go through some of the workouts I did."

Last summer, Bradford did not know what awaited him beyond the season, either. He came to the Eagles without a long-term commitment, and his performance would dictate whether he lasted beyond 2015.

Despite inconsistency, the Eagles' brass saw enough promise to give Bradford a new contract. He signed it hoping that he could find stability in Philadelphia. Two months later, the Eagles acquired the No. 2 pick to select Carson Wentz.

That transaction seemed to cap Bradford's career under Doug Pederson before it started. No matter the team's insistence that Bradford is the starter, Wentz will eventually be the quarterback - if not this season, then beyond. Wentz's presence might not affect Bradford's playing time yet, but it has affected the distribution of snaps among the three quarterbacks during the spring. Pederson gave Bradford, Chase Daniel, and Carson Wentz an equal amount of work during the spring. Pederson admitted it was more than a No. 3 quarterback would typically receive, and he said that will continue early in training camp. At some point, though, Pederson must make sure Bradford receives enough work to be best prepared to start Week 1.

"I don't know if there's a certain percentage," Bradford said. "Every coach I've been with, in the offseason, all the reps are evenly split and the closer you get to the first game, it starts getting tailored a little more where the first group starts taking one or two more snaps per period than they had been."

While benefiting from improved health, Bradford is also learning a new offense for the fifth time in his career. However, this offense shares concepts that he used as a rookie in St. Louis when Pat Shurmur was his offensive coordinator, and he'll have greater responsibility at the line of scrimmage than he did last season. That could be beneficial for Bradford, whose football intelligence is considered a strength.

One of Bradford's best games last season came in Week 17, after Chip Kelly was dismissed, when Shurmur allowed for more adjustments. He'll have that freedom whenever he's on the field this season.

"Obviously, with that freedom, there comes a lot of responsibility," Bradford said. "You're in charge of getting into the right play, getting out of a bad play. You're responsible for everyone out there. Last year with Chip, obviously trying to play at the tempo we did, it was hard to really do that. We chose tempo over that freedom."

Bradford said there's benefits to both approaches, but he believes what the Eagles do this year will help him get out of "negative plays" when he realizes the play call is not best suited for the defense's formation at the line of scrimmage.

Entering his seventh season in the NFL, Bradford's talent has too often been more of a tease than a testament of the investments made in him. That inconsistency was part of why the Eagles made the trade for Wentz. So with Bradford's clock ticking, training camp will begin a pivotal season in his career. The best argument he has about finally meeting his potential is that he's healthier than he's been in years.

"Compared to where I was last year," Bradford said, "it's really not even close."

zberman@phillynews.com

@ZBerm www.philly.com/eaglesblog