St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher believes Sam Bradford can become the NFL’s best quarterback.
It’s important to Fisher that Bradford becomes an elite quarterback, because his development will play a large role in determining Fisher’s success or failure.
The Rams had the No. 2 pick in the draft when the 2011 season ended, giving them the opportunity to draft one of the top two quarterback prospects—Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III. Instead, they traded the No. 2 pick to the Redskins, moved down to the No. 6 pick and acquired a second-round pick this year, plus first-round picks in 2013 and 2014.
The Rams think they already have their franchise guy in Bradford.
“There’s a number of friends of mine in the league that know the league, and I had one of them tell me during the process that they thought Sam may be one of the better quarterbacks—or the best quarterback—in the league … he just hasn’t had a chance to prove it yet,” Fisher said on ESPN’s “Mike & Mike in the Morning.” “That weighed very heavily in my opinion. Very, very, impressive player. I think he has a tremendous upside.’’
Fisher has been busier than he bargained for since becoming the Rams’ head coach, with defensive coordinator Gregg Williams being suspended indefinitely for his role in the Saints’ bounty scandal. Fisher hasn’t announced a replacement for Williams—and has indicated he’ll use a committee approach to the job. If Williams is ever reinstated, Fisher said he would consider rehiring him.
“Gregg is very, very remorseful at this point—he regrets everything that took place,” Fisher said.
Williams will have plenty of time to think about his wrongdoings. Meanwhile, Fisher hopes he’s right about how good Bradford will be.