PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Eagles began their week of practice for the season opener with every player healthy enough to take part.
“I expect all 63 to go,” Eagles coach Chip Kelly said Wednesday morning, counting his practice squad.
That includes tight end Zach Ertz, who had surgery last month to repair a core muscle injury, and outside linebacker Marcus Smith, who missed several weeks with a groin injury.
“[Ertz] was cleared to go today,” Kelly said. “We’ll see how he handles it.”
It is worth noting that, because they are playing Monday night in Atlanta, the Eagles’ Wednesday practice followed the format of their normal Tuesday practice sessions. The practice lasted about an hour and was less intense than practices later in the week. As part of Kelly’s science-based approach, the Eagles’ Tuesday practices are considered part of the recovery process from the previous weekend’s game.
So Ertz and Smith won’t really be tested until Thursday’s practice sessions. That’s when Kelly will begin running his up-tempo practices and drilling the plays he plans to feature against the Falcons.
Ertz, the third-year tight end, spent his offseason working hard to improve as a blocker in order to merit more playing time. He met with former tight end Tony Gonzalez and worked with former Dallas Cowboys offensive line coach Hudson Houck.
The muscle injury occurred during a practice at the NovaCare Complex. Ertz had surgery, performed by Dr. William Meyers, to repair the damage.
Smith is trying to bounce back from a disappointing rookie season. The first-round draft pick from Louisville seldom played last season. This year, with the departure of Trent Cole and the promotion of Brandon Graham, there is an opening for a third outside linebacker to get significant playing time.
Smith was running downfield during a special-teams practice when he went down. He said at the time that he hoped to be back in time for the regular-season opener.
Kelly said Vinny Curry, Brad Jones and Bryan Braman were available to fill the third linebacker role “if Smitty can’t go.”
