Mark Sanchez watched the Eagles swing a trade this offseason for fellow quarterback Sam Bradford, but his goal in Philly remains unchanged.
"Everybody wants to be the starter and I'm no different," Sanchez said Thursday, per the team's official website.
"Coach will make that determination at some point. We want everybody to be healthy. But that doesn't affect how I prepare or how I transition into this next season," Sanchez said. "All of us come into that quarterback room, walk in the huddle, you act like you're the starter. That's the only way I know how to play. As soon as you start thinking or counting reps or, 'I wonder if this guy's going to be healthy,' then you're already beat. There's no point in being out here."
Assuming he can brush off Matt Barkley and Tim Tebow, Sanchez has a legitimate chance to see more than practice snaps in organized team activities. Coach Chip Kelly emphasized Thursday that he'll conduct an open competition at quarterback, but will Bradford be ready?
The former Rams passer "took a step back two weeks ago" and "walked into the NovaCare Complex with a pronounced limp" on Thursday, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Kelly refused to guess when Bradford would be fully healthy, while the signal-caller acknowledged Thursday that his second major knee surgery in as many offseasons has presented challenges.
"I think overall the process, it's taken a little longer the second time around," Bradford said, per the Inquirer. "From everyone I talked to, they said it's normal. They say that's what to expect. I think it really has gotten a lot better in the past two months. ... As long as we continue to progress and don't have any setbacks, I feel very comfortable with where my knee's at right now."
We view Bradford as the likely starter when healthy, but nobody in Philly is willing to say when that will be. If Bradford can't operate at full power by training camp, every new practice will tug Sanchez closer to meaningful snaps come September.
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