PHILADELPHIA -- Sam Bradford threw three interceptions in the Philadelphia Eagles' Monday night game against the New York Giants. Apparently, people noticed.

Former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski, now an ESPN analyst, said he was "ticked" by Bradford's play. In an appearance Tuesday on 97.5 The Fanatic, Jaworski said Bradford was being too careless with the football.

Sam Bradford has nine interceptions to go with nine touchdown passes this season. AP Photo/Michael Perez

"I was ticked off by how Sam Bradford is playing," Jaworski said. "You have to be careful with the football. It's that simple. The quickest way to the bench and the quickest way out of this league is to throw interceptions. What's Sam have now? Nine interceptions for the year? You're not going to win many football games throwing that many interceptions. They were inaccurate throws."

Bradford has thrown nine interceptions. He has also thrown nine touchdown passes. Head coach Chip Kelly and offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur said one of the interceptions against the Giants resulted from a miscommunication between Bradford and wide receiver Riley Cooper.

On the play, Cooper is supposed to begin running hard downfield. Based on the coverage, he then decides whether to keep running or turn the route into a curl. Bradford is reading the coverage as well. He threw the ball deep, but Cooper decided to go for the curl option.

"It's an adjusted route and a decision [has] to be made," Shurmur said. "I won't tell you what number Riley was in the progression, but we have a progression. Typically, you want to throw it to the guys that are [covered] one-on-one or wide open, and then if they're not, you move on. I'm trying to simplify it -- you're looking for one-on-ones. If you catch it none-on-one, you like that better."

When Bradford let it go, he was expecting a play like the one on which Cooper caught a 43-yard pass. Instead, there was no one near the ball except for Giants safety Brandon Meriweather.

The thing is, Bradford was not making deep throws earlier in the season. He was opting for shorter throws and check-downs almost exclusively. The Eagles had only seven pass plays of 20 yards or more through their first three games, and several of those were short passes that were taken for longer gains by the receiver.

Bradford completed four passes for 20 yards or more in the game at Washington. He completed three in each of the Eagles' victories over New Orleans and the Giants. It could be that Bradford's interceptions are a result of his taking more shots downfield.

The trick is to keep him taking those shots without getting as many of them intercepted. It might be that this is a necessary step in Bradford's return to action after almost two years lost to knee injuries.

At the time of his 2013 ACL tear, Bradford had thrown 14 touchdown passes and four interceptions for the St. Louis Rams. He was comfortable in the Rams' offensive system and familiar with his teammates.

"I think he'll continue to do better things and make less mistakes as we go," Shurmur said, "and I think I saw that process when we were together [in St. Louis]."

Shurmur was the Rams' offensive coordinator in 2010, Bradford's rookie year. He left to become head coach of the Cleveland Browns, and Bradford played with new offensive coordinators in 2011 and 2012. By 2013, he was in his second year in coordinator Brian Schottenheimer's offense.

Now Bradford is in his second month running Kelly's offense. While it has elements familiar from Bradford's career at Oklahoma, it's still an adjustment. Bradford has begun to throw downfield more. On Monday night, he also moved around in the pocket more than he had earlier in the season.

"I think he'll continue to get better," Shurmur said. "He hasn't played a lot of football in the last two years, and we're bringing him back. We're fortunate enough to be winning games, however we're doing it, and this thing is a 16-game journey until hopefully you're in the playoffs competing to win it all."