TEMPE, Ariz. -- As the Arizona Cardinals continue their first week of their offseason conditioning program, they’re handling new quarterback Sam Bradford with white gloves as he continues to recover from a knee injury that limited him to two games in 2017.
Bradford, who signed with Arizona as a free agent last month, lifted weights but did not go through conditioning drills when part of Arizona’s training was open to the media on Tuesday.
And that was all part of the plan.
“I’ve talked to everybody who’s ever trained him and I talked to the current physical therapist who was with him,” said Buddy Morris, the Cardinals’ strength and conditioning coach. “I think we got a great plan between myself, [trainer] Tom Reed and, obviously, Sam. Just like what we did for Carson [Palmer] a couple years ago.
“I get tired of people telling me how much I can’t do. I worry about what I can do. So, we’re going to focus on what we can do with Sam and we’re going to put him in a position to achieve optimal levels and put him in the best possible position to win football games. So, trust me, we’ve talked about him.”
Bradford said during his introductory news conference on March 16 that his oft-injured left knee “feels good” after injuring it in Week 1 last season and then re-aggravating it in Week 5, which put him on the injured reserve for the rest of the season. He had it scoped in early November by orthopedist James Andrews.
Earlier this week, the Cardinals’ medical team met to discuss Bradford’s offseason program, which Morris will develop specifically for Bradford.
Bradford looked to be moving well in the weight room -- a vastly different scenario than being on the field for non-contact practices which start April 17 with a three-day voluntary minicamp for veterans.
Whether Bradford will be on the field has yet to be announced, but Morris will continue to strive to get the Cardinals’ new starting quarterback ready for the season.
“We’re going to do what Sam can do at this point in time,” Morris said. “And we’re going to progress from there.”