Nigel Bradham: ‘People are still doubting’ the Eagles

A year ago, the Philadelphia Eagles played the no-respect card to the hilt.

It went a long way toward helping them win their first Super Bowl.

‘Honestly, still lack of respect’

So what will this year’s motivation be?

“Honestly, still, lack of respect,” Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham told Mike Dempsey and Brad Hopkins on Late Hits. “And we all feel that way. There’s been a lot of speculation, a lot of people saying a lot of things and doubting us. Even after we won the Super Bowl, people were saying our quarterback (Carson Wentz), he won’t be the same (after a devastating knee injury last season) and things like that.

‘I don’t think people realize that we’ve got a lot of depth’

“People are still doubting us, but I don’t think people realize that we’ve got a lot of depth, we’ve got a lot of versatility, a lot of guys that can play multiple positions and contribute. And that’s one thing that’s going to be key for us this season.”

Bradham insists the Eagles are taking nothing for granted. Not only do they intend to prove the skeptics wrong, again, but they’re also determined to stay true to the vow coach Doug Pederson made to his club after it beat the New England Patriots for the Vince Lombardi Trophy that this is their “new normal.”

‘We’re trying to build a legacy and a dynasty, and we want to be legendary’

“We want to continue to build on where we left off and we don’t want to be one of those one-hit-wonder teams,” Bradham said. “We’re trying to build a legacy and a dynasty, and we want to be legendary. That’s our motivation.”

He is excited about Wentz’s progress in recovering from his injury, and is equally pleased that the Eagles arguably have the strongest QB situation in the NFL with Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles as a backup.

‘You see (Wentz’s) work ethic every day’

“He’s tremendous, he’s ahead of schedule,” Bradham said. “He’s an extremely hard-worker. (His wanting to be great) and making sure he’s going to do everything in his power to be great — the film study, the extra work he’s done. Just coming off an ACL and to be where he’s at, already running and standing and making great moves in the pocket is what he was doing before and he’s already doing those type of things. You see his work ethic every day. I mean, this is his offense and everyone knows that.

“We’ve got two leaders and that’s the fortunate thing about us. Nick Foles is also a tremendous leader and to have the ability, just have that security and going into this season with that security. …  feel like it should almost be illegal, but I appreciate it.”