St. Louis is a far cry from Philadelphia when it comes to media and the spotlight and pressure and national attention.
So Sam Bradford, penciled in as the Eagles' 2015 opening-day quarterback, was asked Wednesday afternoon if he had any idea what he was getting into.
“I’m not sure, but I’m up for a challenge,” he said. “I know there’s some days you guys are probably going to love me and some days you’re probably going to hate me. That’s all part of it.
“Hopefully, more days of love than hate, but it’s going to be a fun ride, I know that.”
Bradford, acquired by Chip Kelly Tuesday in a trade that sent Nick Foles and a second-round pick to the Rams, was at the NovaCare Complex Wednesday discussing the challenges in front of him.
His last two seasons have ended with torn left ACLs, and Bradford knows the spotlight that shines on him this fall is going to be far brighter than it ever was in St. Louis.
Bradford hasn’t played a regular-season game since Oct. 20, 2013, when he initially tore his ACL in a game against the Panthers in Charlotte, N.C.
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Ten months later, he was back on the field for the 2014 preseason, but in the Rams’ third preseason game — Aug. 23 at Cleveland — he tore his ACL again.
He was having a very good preseason last year — 62 percent completion, four TDs, one INT, 103.5 passer rating — when he suffered his second torn ACL in 10 months.
“The second time around, it was harder mentally than it was physically,” he said. “To put all the work in and be ready? I felt like I was playing at a very high level in training camp last year, and to have it all taken away again, there was a brief period of time I wasn’t sure I wanted to go through it again.
“I cleared my head for a week and realized there was no way football could not be part of my life.”
Bradford said he’s still rehabbing from his latest knee injury and taking things slower than in 2013, under the advice of Dr. James Andrews, who performed both surgeries.
He said he isn’t sure about his exact timetable but said he expects to be 100 percent full-go by opening day in September.
“I’ll be lying if I say I won’t be a little nervous first time I step back on the field but I’m sure once I get out there and I take that first hit, I’ll probably shake it off and be just fine,” he said.
Why did it happen? Why did he suffer the same season-ending injury two years in a row?
“I think it’s probably one of those freak things,” he said. “I get hit a certain way two times on my knee, and regardless of whether my ACL was an original or a repair, it was just going to happen.
“No one wants to be injured, no one likes to be injured, no one asks to be injured. It’s just something you deal with, and this is a fresh start for me.”
Bradford, 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, turns 28 in November.
Barring another injury or something else unexpected, he’ll become the Eagles’ fifth opening-day quarterback in the last seven years, following Donovan McNabb in 2009, Kevin Kolb in 2010, Michael Vick 2011 through 2013 and Foles last year.
The Eagles haven’t won a playoff game since 2008 under McNabb. They’re one of only 13 NFL teams without a postseason win since 2009.
And Bradford is the latest to try to reverse their fortunes.
“The way I look at it, the Eagles wanted me, they pursued me and they got me in this building,” Bradford said. “I’m happy to be here and I’m ready to get to work. I look at the opportunity, and I think it’s a great one. I’m looking forward to the fresh start.”
Bradford, Mark Sanchez and Matt Barkley are the three quarterbacks under contract, and Bradford said he expects to compete with Sanchez for the starting job.
“When I came into the league (in 2010), I competed with A.J. Feeley, who was a quarterback here,” he said.
“That’s the mindset you have to have. Whether it’s your first year, your fifth year, your 12th year. When you get to training camp, your mindset is that it’s a competion, and I don’t think anything’s going to change.”
Bradford won 18 of 49 starts with the Rams, completing 58 percent of his passes with 59 touchdowns and 38 interceptions.
His offensive coordinator here will be Pat Shurmur, who served in the same role in St. Louis under Steve Spagnuolo in 2010, Bradford’s rookie year.
Bradford said Kelly’s offense is very similar to what he ran at Oklahoma under offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, now the head coach at Indiana.
“Making quick decisions, getting the ball out of your hand in run-pass option is similar to what we did in college,” he said. “There’s just a lot of carry over to what we did at Oklahoma, and I think my skill set fits that perfectly.”
Bradford said his back-to-back season-ending knee injuries taught him a very important lesson.
“I found that I truly love this game,” he said. “I’ve had it taken away from me twice in the last two years and when something is taken away from you, you find out how much you really love it.”