ChiefsPlanet - Chiefs Chicago article on Bradley

Bradley just wasn't good fit for Bears
Injury-prone receiver's potential was never realized with Bears

Dan Pompei | On the NFL
9:33 AM CDT, October 11, 2008

One of the mysteries of the NFL is why Mark Bradley did not become a productive starter for the Bears. Even in some corners of the Bears locker room, the wide receiver's failures were not understood completely.

Injuries were a part of it, certainly, but there was more to it than a trail of medical records. Here is the untold story of why Bradley is now a Kansas City Chief.

It seemed as if every time the former second-round pick had an opportunity, he took advantage of it, showing burst and gaining yards after the catch.

In his rookie season, the team was convinced he clearly was better than Bernard Berrian, who had been drafted the previous year. Bradley started ahead of Berrian before tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in October.

Bradley tried to come back in off-season practices, but it would be 14 months until he was fully recovered. A source said he felt the team rushed him back too soon.

As a result, he was a shell of himself for most of the 2006 season. A high ankle sprain knocked him out of another five games. Still Bradley averaged 20.1 yards per catch—the third highest average in the NFL.

But in 2007, Bradley could not beat out Berrian in training camp, and Berrian went on to have his breakout season.

In training camp this summer, Bradley came on strong again despite more problems with his right knee. But he got behind Brandon Lloyd, who had played for offensive coordinator Ron Turner at Illinois, and he couldn't find a way to get on the field. Bears coaches thought Lloyd was a little more versatile.

It was never a consideration to have Bradley take playing time away from Marty Booker, Devin Hester and Rashied Davis this year, or from Muhsin Muhammad or Davis last year, because the team perceived him as strictly an "X" receiver, or split end.

Bears coaches thought he could not play the "Z" position, or play in the slot. The Z receiver has to be a more disciplined route-runner and a better blocker. Bradley could run the downfield routes, posts and crossing routes as well as anyone, but he struggled with intermediate routes and out routes.

A long strider, Bradley could not make the quick cuts required to play in the slot. Reconstructions on both knees (one in college) had affected Bradley's ability to cut to a degree, but not to the point where he could not be effective.

Like Bradley, Lloyd can play only the X position. So Bradley found himself without a role again this year. And when Bradley is uninvolved, he tends to drift and lose focus.

When Bradley was a rookie, people around him found him a little cocky and nonchalant. But they say he was humbled after his knee injury. Overall, despite some accountability and maintenance issues, the Bears thought he had good character.

Several former teammates vouched for him when he was out of work. Muhammad even phoned Chiefs coach Herm Edwards unsolicited to recommend him.

The Bears figured that if Bradley could not establish himself in three years, he probably never would—at least not with them. But many in the organization say they would not be surprised if Bradley is successful with the Chiefs.

He's healthy now and, unlike his situation with the Bears, Bradley is the only player with his skill set on the Chiefs. Kansas City offensive coordinator Chan Gailey says he has been impressed with Bradley's athleticism in the two weeks he has been with the team.

"He has a chance to be involved fairly quickly because we have not found the right combination at receiver," Gailey said.

Interestingly, Bradley's primary position with the Chiefs has been Z.

Bengals business: An example of how business can affect football is evident in Cincinnati.

In the off-season Bengals wide receiver Chad Ocho Cinco said he wanted to be traded and to emphasize his point, he did not show up for workouts. His teammate T.J. Houshmandzadeh also did not show up for workouts because he was entering the final year of his contract and apparently wanted to make a statement about what the Bengals were or were not offering him.

"Neither guy came to camp in shape to play football," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. "They have admitted to that. They did not participate in the off-season [workouts] and it showed. They both got injured in camp. They had very little time with the quarterback. Until we got to the third game of the year, they were not up to speed.

"If you don't participate in the off-season and you come to camp and you're standing on the sideline all the time, what good are you to me? You can't have a football team that way, or at least I don't know how to."

In the regular season both Pro Bowlers subsequently got off to slow starts. Ocho Cinco, who ranked third in the league in receiving yards in 2007, ranks 80th after five weeks.

And their team is 0-5.

Lewis said both receivers have worked into the flow now. He said Ocho Cinco has worked extremely hard to rehab his shoulder injury.

But the damage has been done.

"Those guys have forgotten a little bit how they got to be the players they were," Lewis said.

Extra points:Adam Jones never has gotten it and probably never will. After his most recent dust-up—a fight with the man the Cowboys assigned to protect him—Jones should be suspended and cut. ... The best return man in football so far this season has not been Devin Hester. It has been Reggie Bush of the Saints. Hester should be able to get his magic back, but returners are funny that way. They rarely sustain dominance. You may recall that when Hester was holding out of camp in the summer, I suggested the Bears should trade him. Well, if they had, they still would be 3-2 today. And they would have maybe an extra first-round pick and third-round pick in their hip pockets. ... Some readers took me to task last week for writing that Kyle Orton's challenge will be to avoid playing like Rex Grossman next week. It wasn't intended as a shot at Grossman, whom I believe will be an NFL starter in the future. Rather, I was trying to say Orton needs to be consistent from week to week, which Grossman often was not.