Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback given a health plan by his new team

Now with the Arizona Cardinals, former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Bradford is hoping to play more than just one game in 2018.

After playing all 16 games during the regular season for the Minnesota Vikings in 2016, it seemed like Sam Bradford’s injury issues were a thing of the past. However, just one week into the 2017 season with the Vikings and the quarterback was back to missing time with a knee injury.

Following a great performance in Minnesota’s Week 1 win over the New Orleans Saints, Bradford ended up only playing a total of two more quarters during the Vikings’ other 15 regular season games last year. He was eventually placed on injured reserve last November with a knee injury.

Oddly enough, Minnesota did activate Bradford for the 2017 playoffs, but he never took a snap in either one of the team’s two postseason matchups.

After the conclusion of the Vikings’ run in the playoffs, the team’s 2017 season officially came to an end and Bradford became a free-agent for the first time since entering the NFL in 2010.

There was some talk of Minnesota possibly re-signing the quarterback this offseason, but that chatter quickly quieted down and Bradford ended up agreeing on a one-year deal with the Arizona Cardinals. Despite the quarterback’s lack of playing time in 2017 and his injury history, the Cardinals had no problem giving Bradford a contract that will pay him at least $15 million next season.

His first offseason with his new team is currently underway and Arizona is apparently doing everything it can to make sure he stays on the field for more than six quarters in 2018. On Wednesday, Cardinals strength and conditioning coach Buddy Morris discussed the team’s strategy to keep the quarterback healthy this year.

"“I’ve talked to everybody who’s ever trained him and I talked to the current physical therapist who was with him. 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.” Minnesota Vikings The Viking Age 0d - 6 biggest draft steals in Minnesota Vikings history More headlines around FanSided: 1d - Former Vikings first-round pick could reportedly return to NFC North 1d - Bears analyst has extremely embarrassing Kirk Cousins take 1d - 6 Vikings who (maybe) won't make the 53-man roster in 2023 2d - Which teams could be drafting a quarterback next year? 2d - Predicting what the Vikings will do in the 2023 NFL Draft based on 2022 More News at The Viking Age"

Morris clearly doesn’t know what he’s in for this year if he’s already tired of answering questions about Bradford’s health.

The quarterback has had injury problems throughout his college and pro career and there’s no reason to think that will be any different in 2018.

Arizona has been conducting their offseason conditioning program this week with new head coach Steve Wilks. Bradford has lifted weights with his new team, but he has not taken part in any of the Cardinals’ conditioning drills this week according to ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss.

Of course, the quarterback not participating in any drills is likely part of Arizona’s “health plan” for him. It couldn’t possibly be due to Bradford experiencing more problems with his knees, could it?

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Good for the Cardinals though for trying to convince themselves that they can keep him healthy for an entire season. But Bradford’s past seems to indicate that Arizona is likely just in for a rude awakening in 2018 when the quarterback eventually ends up back on the sideline in street clothes .