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By Casey Pearce
Special to Stlouisrams.com
When the Rams kickoff the 2010 season next Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, they’ll do so with Sam Bradford at quarterback, Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo announced Saturday.
“We’re confident, the staff’s confident, the team’s confident,” Spagnuolo said. “It’s well-deserved. He deserves this opportunity.”
The announcement comes two days after Bradford turned in a near flawless performance in the Rams’ preseason finale against the Ravens. He was a perfect 6-for-6 passing and finished the preseason 33-of-55 (60 pct.) for 338 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
In the final two games of the preseason, Bradford played seven series, and the offense scored on five of those drives (three touchdowns, two field goals). That, combined with the way Bradford has handled himself on the practice field, in the locker room and in meetings, all had bearing on Spagnuolo’s decision.
“It was evident in these last three games,” Spagnuolo said. “He had pretty good control of what we were doing. The team kind of rallies around him.”
Spagnuolo described Bradford as predictably professional when he received the news. The former Heisman Trophy winner was pleased but poised after getting the nod.
“Obviously I was extremely excited,” Bradford said. “I feel like Coach has given me a great opportunity here to start next week versus Arizona, but I realize that there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that opportunity.”
Bradford said he’s wasted no time in recent weeks pondering whether or not he’d be the starter because the decision was out of his hands. But his official move to the top of the depth chart is something that can give him a little juice.
“I’ve said this from the beginning, it really doesn’t matter what I thought,” Bradford said. “It didn’t matter if I thought I was ready or not. It was going to be up to our coaches. I think our coaches made that decision and they feel confident in me and they feel that I’m ready. So with their confidence, that’s definitely something I can feed off of.”
While Bradford thrived in his first preseason, both he and Spagnuolo recognized Saturday that things will be different when the stakes are raised next Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome. Blitzes will be more exotic and coverages will be more varied, but Bradford won’t be asked to do it all himself.
“He’s got a good team around, this will still be about the team,” Spagnuolo said. “The guys have been doing a good job all the way through. When we talk about Sam leading the team in these preseason games, there were ten other guys out there who really did a nice job, too.”
Bradford will be helped by those on the field with him and those on the sideline, particularly veteran A.J. Feeley. Spagnuolo called Feeley equally professional when he was told that Bradford would start.
Feeley, a 10th-year pro who has eight years of experience in Offensive Coordinator Pat Shurmur’s offense, has been an asset to Bradford and will continue to do so in his role as a veteran backup.
“A.J.’s been awesome,” Bradford said. “He’s definitely one of the reasons I’ve been able to make progress. He’s been so helpful from Day 1. I’ve said it all camp: he sees things out there that only a guy who has the experience of A.J. can see. When you get pointers from a guy like that, it’s really beneficial, especially for me.”
Bradford recognizes that his development as an NFL quarterback is still in its early stages, but he’s ready to work hard and embrace the challenges ahead.
“I understand that I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me and there are still a lot of things that I can improve on,” Bradford said. “But I feel very confident that I have the ability to help this team win football games.”
Special to Stlouisrams.com
When the Rams kickoff the 2010 season next Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, they’ll do so with Sam Bradford at quarterback, Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo announced Saturday.
“We’re confident, the staff’s confident, the team’s confident,” Spagnuolo said. “It’s well-deserved. He deserves this opportunity.”
The announcement comes two days after Bradford turned in a near flawless performance in the Rams’ preseason finale against the Ravens. He was a perfect 6-for-6 passing and finished the preseason 33-of-55 (60 pct.) for 338 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
In the final two games of the preseason, Bradford played seven series, and the offense scored on five of those drives (three touchdowns, two field goals). That, combined with the way Bradford has handled himself on the practice field, in the locker room and in meetings, all had bearing on Spagnuolo’s decision.
“It was evident in these last three games,” Spagnuolo said. “He had pretty good control of what we were doing. The team kind of rallies around him.”
Spagnuolo described Bradford as predictably professional when he received the news. The former Heisman Trophy winner was pleased but poised after getting the nod.
“Obviously I was extremely excited,” Bradford said. “I feel like Coach has given me a great opportunity here to start next week versus Arizona, but I realize that there’s a lot of responsibility that comes with that opportunity.”
Bradford said he’s wasted no time in recent weeks pondering whether or not he’d be the starter because the decision was out of his hands. But his official move to the top of the depth chart is something that can give him a little juice.
“I’ve said this from the beginning, it really doesn’t matter what I thought,” Bradford said. “It didn’t matter if I thought I was ready or not. It was going to be up to our coaches. I think our coaches made that decision and they feel confident in me and they feel that I’m ready. So with their confidence, that’s definitely something I can feed off of.”
While Bradford thrived in his first preseason, both he and Spagnuolo recognized Saturday that things will be different when the stakes are raised next Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome. Blitzes will be more exotic and coverages will be more varied, but Bradford won’t be asked to do it all himself.
“He’s got a good team around, this will still be about the team,” Spagnuolo said. “The guys have been doing a good job all the way through. When we talk about Sam leading the team in these preseason games, there were ten other guys out there who really did a nice job, too.”
Bradford will be helped by those on the field with him and those on the sideline, particularly veteran A.J. Feeley. Spagnuolo called Feeley equally professional when he was told that Bradford would start.
Feeley, a 10th-year pro who has eight years of experience in Offensive Coordinator Pat Shurmur’s offense, has been an asset to Bradford and will continue to do so in his role as a veteran backup.
“A.J.’s been awesome,” Bradford said. “He’s definitely one of the reasons I’ve been able to make progress. He’s been so helpful from Day 1. I’ve said it all camp: he sees things out there that only a guy who has the experience of A.J. can see. When you get pointers from a guy like that, it’s really beneficial, especially for me.”
Bradford recognizes that his development as an NFL quarterback is still in its early stages, but he’s ready to work hard and embrace the challenges ahead.
“I understand that I’ve got a lot of work ahead of me and there are still a lot of things that I can improve on,” Bradford said. “But I feel very confident that I have the ability to help this team win football games.”
