All eyes will be on Sam Bradford when training camp gets underway, he is a different category in terms of a player battling back from injury. Every movement he makes is going to be judged. His progress as a football player will be evaluated by the football experts. The same experts will also do their best to play doctor with how he looks from a physical standpoint.
His recovery is a story line of its own right, the break or break of the 2015 season, but there are currently three potential starters that missed multiple games last year due to injury, and in the case of Kiko Alonso, the entire season was lost.
The Eagles could have moved on from DeMeco Ryans but elected to not cut ties with a player who tore his Achilles. The Eagles had depth at the middle linebacker position, yet they expended a player who was questionable to be ready for the start of the 2015 season.
Walter Thurmond suffered a torn pectoral muscle, and is currently slated to start at safety opposite of Malcom Jenkins. Will the injury linger when asked to make the tackle when helping against the run? We will know shorty when the pads go on and the hitting begins at training camp.
Kiko Alonso was a freak of nature his rookie season. He has the makeup to be a playmaking linebacker; he has some traits I remember watching in former Eagle William Thomas. The guy is athletic, instinctive but he relies on his quick change of direction to make plays, and the mental hurdle of fully trusting the knee is hopefully something he has already concurred.
Demarco Murray and Ryan Mathews are going to lead the power run game this season, yet both backs only have one fully healthy season in the NFL. Neither of these players has experienced the high tempo style yet, and the team can’t afford to have either guy go down for any extended period of time.
I know Chip has the sports science working at the NovaCare complex, but I wonder how much sport psychology is used in the recovery process of his players.
My football career ended after high school, but I tore both hamstrings a few years back and to this day they never feel 100%, but it’s more of the mental reminder than the physical discomfort when I’m at the gym or playing recreational sports.
These guys are warriors on the gridiron, putting themselves in physical combat after the same combat forced them on the surgery table followed by months of painful rehabilitation.
The number one goal for training camp and preseason for NFL teams; walk away without any serious injury. The Eagles will soon know how their sports science philosophy is looking, and a better vision of the upcoming season will be shared by everyone who has been waiting for the return of football.
