After Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater tore an ACL, an effort immediately emerged to identify all of the team’s options at the position. Few if any lists included Sam Bradford’s name.
But Bradford, whom the Eagles insisted was their guy for 2016, is suddenly Minnesota’s guy for 2016. The Eagles have announced that the Vikings sent a first-round pick in 2017 and a fourth-round pick in 2018 to get Bradford.
It’s a bold, all-in move by the Vikings, but it’s fraught with risk. Bradford has torn his own ACL twice before (Shaun Hill replaced him as the starter two years ago), and the Vikings learned the hard way in 2013 the challenges arising from absorbing a new quarterback into the organization on the fly, given the failed Josh Freeman experiment.
Bradford leaves Philly with his $11 million signing bonus, the second installment of which was due to be paid out on or before Thursday, September 1. So the Vikings get Bradford for $7 million this year. Come March, they’ll have to decide whether to pay another $4 million, followed by a $13 million base salary.
The move gives Minnesota not only a quarterback for 2017, but insurance against the possibility that Bridgewater won’t be fully recovered by next year at this time. The team’s decision to give up so much to get Bradford possibly is a hint that, given the knee dislocation and other damage done after the ACL tore, maybe there’s reason to be concerned.
