Eagles vs. Ravens
7 p.m. on NBC10
After spending some of the week practicing against the Baltimore Ravens at the NovaCare Complex, the Eagles now gear up to play them in tonight's second preseason game.
This is an important one for the Eagles — it's not overselling it to call this the biggest preseason game in franchise history given the quarterback situation.
Here are five things to note headed into tonight's game at Lincoln Financial Field:
1. Bradford's Eagles debut
Sam Bradford will step foot into an NFL game tonight for the first time since tearing his ACL for a second time on Aug. 23, 2014. Bradford has appeared in just two games in the last 22 months.
It's unknown how much Bradford will play. The third preseason game (Aug. 29 in Green Bay) is the dress rehearsal, so expect the Eagles to ease Bradford in before giving him some more snaps in Game 3.
But make no mistake, all eyes will be on the QB tonight. How does he look? How is his footwork? What about his mobility? Is he as accurate as the Eagles have said he is? Rust? Will the strong training camp carry over?
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So many questions about Bradford. Tonight won't answer all of them, or even most of them, but it will be the first glimpse into what the Eagles' QB situation will look like in 2015. And finally, finally, it allows us to stop speculating about Bradford's skill set in Chip Kelly's offense and witness it firsthand.
The main thing tonight, obviously, is that Bradford exits the game healthy. Everything else is secondary.
2. LB shuffle
The Eagles were extremely thin at outside linebacker before they lost Marcus Smith to a hamstring injury in Thursday's practice. Smith was carted off and will not play against the Ravens.
It's a shame because Smith actually acquitted himself nicely, playing a large number of snaps in the Birds' preseason-opening 36-10 win over the Colts.
With Travis Long already lost for the season to another torn ACL, the Eagles know they won't be in good shape if Connor Barwin or Brandon Graham get hurt this season.
"Last year, we were a lot deeper," said Bryan Braman, a special-teamer who could see some more reps at outside linebacker out of necessity.
Behind Barwin and Graham, the Eagles will utilize Brad Jones and Vinny Curry at outside linebacker. Eagles fans have been clamoring for Curry (nine sacks last season) to get more snaps. Now he has an opportunity.
As for the inside linebackers, Kiko Alonso, DeMeco Ryans any Mychal Kendricks all missed the preseason opener but returned to practice this week. If they do play tonight, it won't be for long.
3. Third-string showcase
Matt Barkley won Round 1 over Tim Tebow in the preseason opener, looking the best of all three Eagles QBs.
Barkley went 12 for 20 for 192 yards (9.6 per attempt). He threw a pick — Kelly said it wasn't Barkley's fault — and also led the Eagles on several deep drives, one of which culminated in a Kenjon Barner rushing touchdown and two of which ended with Cody Parkey field goals.
It's clear Kelly likes Tebow, and it's obvious that Tebow could be utilized on game day in more creative ways than Barkley. But what if Barkley goes out again, outshines Tebow and continues to separate himself?
The Eagles won't carry four quarterbacks, making this one of the most — if not the most — intriguing battles of the preseason.
To be fair, Tebow did not have a lot of time to set his feet and throw in the win over the Colts. The backup offensive line struggled mightily and Tebow took three sacks, losing 28 yards.
But Tebow also could have avoided one or two of the sacks by throwing the ball away. His penchant for trying to keep a play alive and gain positive yardage came back to bite him.
4. How will Parkey respond?
Parkey went 3 for 4 on field goals and 3 for 4 on extra points in the first preseason game, but looked shaky. His long from 48 yards was a knuckleball, and the missed extra point hopefully won't become a trend as the PAT kicks have been moved back from the 2-yard line to the 15.
Parkey was so good as a rookie, making 32 of 36 field goals (88.9 percent), including four from 50-plus yards. His consistency gave the Eagles one less thing to worry about, which was needed after the Alex Henery experiment went awry.
A team that has as much success moving the ball as the Eagles needs its kicker to be reliable. Parkey last season was exactly that, making more field goals than all but two kickers and more extra points than all but one. He finished second in the NFL in scoring with 150 points, behind only the Patriots' Stephen Gostkowski (156).
Parkey was one of the few non-question marks this offseason. With everything else the Eagles need to go right, they'd love to see their kicker go out and make all of his attempts tonight.
5. Other storylines to monitor
• In the first preseason game, first-round WR Nelson Agholor scored a touchdown and second-round CB Eric Rowe forced a fumble and had a tackle for loss. The rookies stood out. How will they follow that up?
• Andrew Gardner seems to have seized the starting right guard spot, at least for the time being. Pay close attention to that position on the offensive line to see if he's responsible for any breakdowns in protection.
• Second-year wideout Josh Huff did little in the preseason opener, and this is a crucial year for him. He's currently listed as the Eagles' starting right wide receiver opposite Riley Cooper.
• The Eagles' secondary did a good job of keeping plays in front of it in the preseason opener. Only one play went for 20-plus yards and that was the one that ended with Rowe forcing a fumble. The avoidance of those "X plays" was a focus all throughout OTAs and training camp.
• The front three of Bennie Logan, Fletcher Cox and Cedric Thornton dominated in limited snaps against the Colts. That is the clear strength of this defense and some around the league think the Eagles have the best front three in football. That unit could spark the entire team by shutting down the run and collapsing the pocket early.