On the NFL: Bradford's strong play proving Shurmur a genius

On Aug. 31, a day after quarterback Teddy Bridgewater's season-ending knee injury sucker-punched the life out of the entire Vikings Super Bowl contender, Shurmur went from a tight ends coach with some fresh ideas on West Coast schematics to resident Winter Park expert on all things Sam Bradford.

Shurmur, who was Bradford's offensive coordinator in St. Louis in 2010 and Philadelphia last season, was asked this week to reflect on that day and the next two that led to the Bradford trade Sept. 3. He used the word "great" five times while answering one question about what he told Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman about Bradford.

"Sam's a great decisionmaker," Shurmur said.

"He has a great sense of timing," Shurmur said.

"I knew he would be a great teammate," Shurmur said.

"And I really felt having been here for a few months that he would be a great, great fit for our team," Shurmur said.

Shurmur also stressed Bradford's accuracy, his toughness, his appreciation for complementary football, and how the 28-year-old's chronically reconstructed left knee had finally returned to full strength when Bradford closed last season as one of the league's better quarterbacks.

But this was eight days before the season. Spielman needed more than an injury report and a talent evaluation. For lack of more polite words, Spielman needed to know if Bradford was lazy and/or dumb. Quarterbacks with either trait tend not to pick things up quickly. Or care much when they don't.

"[Intelligence and work ethic are] a concern when any team goes out and brings a new player in," Shurmur said. "And that was one of the things I was able to answer with no hesitation whatsoever. I knew how hard Sam worked. I knew how smart he was. And I knew it would be just a short amount of time before he picked up what we were doing."

The price would be understandably steep, given the timing. Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman wasn't going to give his buddy Spielman a good-friend discount with that much blood in the water. He wanted a first-round pick in 2017 and a conditional fourth-rounder in 2018 that could climb to a second-rounder.

Roseman had Spielman over the proverbial barrel on a player the Eagles didn't need long-term and had acquired only a year earlier for a second-round pick and Nick Foles, who they didn't want anyway.

For the second time in 12 years, Spielman was about to be remembered for a trade involving an Eagles quarterback. In 2004, his only year as Dolphins general manager, he traded a second-round pick for backup A.J. Feeley. That one didn't work out, but Spielman couldn't be faring any better in the rematch, even if the price he paid makes it a win-win for both teams.

Bradford leads the league in completion percentage (70.4), ranks second in passer rating (109.8), hasn't thrown an interception in 125 passes and hasn't turned the ball over. And, oh yeah, he's also 4-0 as a starter on a 5-0 team that he's taking with him when he returns to Philadelphia to face the Eagles (3-2) on Sunday.

"I'm excited to go back," said Shurmur, who spent 13 seasons in two coaching stints in Philadelphia. "I loved Philadelphia. But in the same sentence, there's no other place that I'd rather be than Minnesota."

When the Eagles fired Chip Kelly last December, they elevated Shurmur to interim coach for the season finale. With Shurmur running the show, Bradford completed 30 of 38 passes in a 35-30 road win over the Giants.

Once Shurmur helped Spielman pull the trigger on the trade, he was asked to help translate Norv Turner's offense into terminology that's familiar to Bradford. Shurmur has succeeded.

"[Shurmur and Bradford] are able to talk and communicate," coach Mike Zimmer said. "And one good thing about Sam is that when we start talking about the game plan and stuff, he'll say, 'I'm not comfortable with that play,' and we won't run it. So, I think the combination of the coaches and [Bradford] working, and the things [Shurmur] has done has helped."

Mark Craig is an NFL and Vikings Insider. • Twitter: @MarkCraigNFL • E-mail: mcraig@startribune.com