Denver Broncos Trade Rumors: Sam Bradford Trade Talks With Philadelphia Eagles
Denver Broncos trade rumors now reveal the team had talks with the Philadelphia Eagles about Sam Bradford. These Broncos trade rumors might suggest that the team isn’t entirely pleased with Mark Sanchez as its answer at quarterback, raising the possibility that the team is still looking for a better option. A report from NFL.com confirms that the Broncos reached out to the Eagles with a preliminary call about Bradford. This followed a statement by Bradford that he was demanding a trade from the Eagles.
A report from ESPN.com revealed that Sam Bradford wants out of Philadelphia after the team acquired the No. 2 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. It has been assumed that the Eagles will select North Dakota State University quarterback Carson Wentz with that pick, presumably setting him up as the “quarterback of the future” in Philadelphia. That led to Bradford having his agent (Tom Condon) speak out about his demands, shining a lot of negative light on a guy who just signed a new contract.
“Sam’s only been in the league for six years and he wants to go some place and be there and know that he’s going to stay as long as he plays well, and his situation now in Philadelphia is different. Sam’s a competitor, and he wants to go someplace and know he’s the man. He just doesn’t want to be there holding the place card and then wondering where’s he’s going to go at the end of the year.”
This is where the Denver Broncos trade rumors surface, as the team could look at Sam Bradford as a better option than recently signed Mark Sanchez. The problem, though, is that the Philadelphia Eagles have reportedly rebuffed any efforts by other teams to acquire Bradford. There was chatter that Bradford could be a good fit with the San Francisco 49ers, but it was Denver that actually placed the call to find out his availability. For now, the Eagles plan to hold on to the former No. 1 overall selection.
Broncos general manager John Elway spoke with the media about his current quarterback (Sanchez) during a pre-draft meeting. While he didn’t address Bradford or trade discussions with the Eagles, he did leave the door wide open for further speculation heading into the 2016 NFL Draft.
“We’re happy with Mark; I mean Mark was a starting point for us. Now we want to find somebody to come in and compete with him. I know Mark’s excited about being here, we’re excited about having him… That’s why we took our time… We’re going to continue to wait and see.”
It would seem that Elway is creating a quarterback controversy in Denver before he even has someone to compete with Mark Sanchez. This could be a strong hint that the Broncos are going to pursue a new quarterback in the later rounds of the 2016 NFL Draft or that the front office has hope that another team is still going to part with a starting quarterback. Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers is certainly one who could be on the move, but if the Philadelphia Eagles can find a taker for Sam Bradford’s salary, it would be hard to pass up that deal.
The Eagles just gave Bradford a two-year deal in the NFL offseason that is worth $35 million. He got an $11 million signing bonus and $22 million of the contract is guaranteed. With this new deal, Bradford has a base salary of $7 million for the 2016 NFL season and then gets a raise to $13 million for the 2017 NFL season. It’s an expensive deal for any team to take on, which is why many fans and analysts could be surprised about these new Denver Broncos trade rumors.
[Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images]
