Arizona Cardinals: Patrick Peterson Wants Sam Bradford
By Erik Lambert
Patrick Peterson is in a difficult position. He’s all about building a championship team around a hot, young quarterback with the Arizona Cardinals.
The problem is he doesn’t have the luxury of time on his side anymore. The All-Pro cornerback just turned 28-years old. That’s not old or anything but it’s a first sign that he’s starting to approach territory where great players begin losing a lot of their steam. As a veteran player, his thoughts aren’t on the future of the franchise. He wants to win as soon as possible. To him, it’s unlikely he’d survive through a long rebuild in Arizona.
This might explain his recent comments regarding the Cardinals quarterback situation. James Jones of NFL Network caught up with him at a celebrity golf tournament down in Nevada. When asked who he thinks should be the starter going into 2018, Peterson didn’t even try to hide his bias. It’s clear his focus is not on the future.
"“Well, right now I’d probably take Sam due to his experience. Due to some of the records that he has in the league. Because when Sam is healthy and is on the field and has talent around him, he’s a top-tier quarterback.The biggest knock on Sam is just staying on the field. I think we have a pretty good opportunity to keep him on the field because last year he really didn’t have to fix anything, just cleaning up his knee,” Peterson said. “… If he’s on the field, we’ll see where the chips stack and where they fall at the end of the season.”"
Peterson clearly thinks Bradford can help them win now
There’s plenty of logic in his reasoning. It’s true. When Bradford has managed to stay on the field, he’s shown he can be a highly effective passer. In 2016 he started 15 games, completed over 71% of his passes with 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions. So the ability is there and he’s still just 30-years old. If he can avoid his persistent knee problems, then it’s true he might be able to elevate that offense back to a high level.
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If that can happen, Peterson no doubt believes he and the defense will pull their weight, thus making the Cardinals a true dark horse to make the playoffs. Win a championship? That’s another story. Bradford has never gotten his team to the postseason in his career. One could argue he had better teams than he does right now too. So it’s fair to ask whether the Cardinals would be doing the right thing by postponing the start of the Rosen era to grant Peterson this wish.