Eagles coach Doug Pederson wants to put any thought of a quarterback controversy to rest.
After the Eagles signed quarterback Chase Daniel on Wednesday, questions were raised about whether Daniel could unseat Sam bradford as the starter. But Pederson said today that everyone understands the pecking order, and Bradford is ahead of Daniel on the depth chart.
“Sam Bradford is the No. 1. Chase Daniel is the No. 2,” Pederson said. “We’re working on the No. 3.”
So let there be no doubt: Bradford will open camp as the Eagles’ No. 1 quarterback. Realistically, however, Daniel’s familiarity with Pederson’s offense may give him a chance to out-perform Bradford and unseat him as the starter. And given Bradford’s injury history, there’s a pretty good chance Daniel will start at some time this season.
Pederson’s comments also strongly suggest that Mark Sanchez is not in the team’s plans. Although Pederson says it’s possible that Sanchez could be the Eagles’ third quarterback, his $4.5 million base salary makes it awfully unlikely that the Eagles will keep him. They’ll try to trade him, and if they can’t, they’ll release him.