Marcus Smith, last years disappointing 1st round draft pick, has suddenly been thrust in the spotlight due to him tweaking his hamstring in yesterday's joint practice. In fact yesterday he was trending on Twitter which I'm sure was news to him because of how little he has contributed to the Philadelphia Eagles' football team. Nevertheless it does put the team in a spot because the depth at outside linebacker is extremely thin due to Travis Long's ACL tear earlier in camp. Vinny Curry is going to play in Smith's spot, although he's used to rushing the passer exclusively and the position is new to him. The good news is it will only keep Smith out of 3 preseason games and he should be back for the start of the regular season.
Sam Bradford is slated to start but according to him "you never know what coach is going to do" but he's hopeful as the second preseason game approaches. His health is of major concern to everyone as the season honestly hinges on his ability to stay healthy and it's why Head Coach Chip Kelly is thinking long and hard about whether getting Bradford some reps in a meaningless game matters. Most people and that includes me believe that he should at the very minimum get a quarter's worth of action to get over the jitters of playing in a live contest after a two year layoff.
DeMarco Murray has been coasting ,honestly, in camp and Kelly is managing his reps with a keen eye especially after coming off a 400+ touches season last year with the Dallas Cowboys. The media in Philly thinks DeMarco is hurt and Kelly isn't spilling the beans but as told to MMQB's Peter King, Kelly is very aware of the downward slope of backs after handling the ball 400+ times the season before and said "it matters how he was managed coming into the next season".
These are the storylines coming into preseason game number 2 for the Philadelphia Eagles.
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