Sam Bradford can afford to wait in contract talks

In April 2010, Kevin Kolb had just been named the Eagles starting quarterback. He had spent the first three seasons of his NFL career behind Donovan McNabb and had earned about $3 million.

He was slated to make an additional $1 million-plus in the final year of his rookie contract, but both the Eagles and the quarterback wanted an extension beyond the next season. Kolb would have preferred a long-term deal, but he had little leverage and was restricted by a rule in the expiring collective bargaining agreement that limited annual raises in base salary to 30 percent.

He could have rolled the dice and played out the final year, but the Eagles were dangling a two-year, $12.2 million deal with…