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Carson Wentz (11) gets the Eagles' QB job from Nick Foles (9) this week. (Michael Perez / Associated Press)
"All-In For Week 3" does not really have the same sound, is not it?
No, it's not catchy. That's not what Carson Wentz wanted. But that's what the Philadelphia Eagles did with Wentz, their third-year quarterback following a knee injury in December, which cut short what he could have been for him in 2017 .
Wentz has targeted the opening of this season for his return. But he did not make his way and his return begins Sunday in Philadelphia against the Indianapolis Colts. For the Eagles, there was no copy of the "All-In for Week 1" approach that could have contributed to the loss of quarterback Robert Griffin III's career with the Washington Redskins.
Now, the Eagles and Wentz are starting to know if their caution will be enough to allow Wentz to pick up where he left off.
[[[[The score is up and the QBs dominate. Is the NFL right to want that?]
"It's been a long time coming," said Wentz. "The off season was not there, and all of this was a lot of unknown. I know you would die from wanting to know. I would die wanting to know at the same time. So, there is a lot of excitement. "
So much has changed for the Eagles since Wentz last played for them. Nick Foles rescued them to a Super Bowl triumph in February. Foles made "Philly Special" part of the NFL's art, and emerged as a bestselling author and quarterback suddenly in demand.
Doug Pederson went from qualifying to NFL head coach. He had to cope with the greatest coach the league has ever known, Bill Belichick, of the New England Patriots.
And the Eagles became champions, with the first Super Bowl victory.
It was supposed to be Wentz doing these great things. The Eagles traded to take him second in the 2016 NFL draft and installed him as an immediate newbie as a rookie. Wentz quickly made the adjustments between North Dakota and the NFL. The most demanding fans of the city loved him. In year 2, Wentz was on a par with Tom Brady in the MVP race.
But then, the shredded knee rushed to the end zone against the Los Angeles Rams and everything changed. Wentz was around the team at the Super Bowl. But it was Foles, not Wentz, who became the hero of the Super Bowl. Wentz was found with the daily routine of his rehabilitation, while having enough time to sit down and assess his strengths and weaknesses on the ground.
"I think that sometimes, somehow a big picture, you have a chance to see everything and take everything from that point of view," Pederson said this week. It's a different point of view and it's a positive point of view. And that's why I'm eager to see where he is in his progress. "
The Eagles resisted any temptation to trade Foles in the offseason and defeated the Atlanta Falcons in the opening game but lost to Tampa Bay last Sunday. The doctors finally agreed to Wentz this week.
"My goal was Week 1," Wentz said at a midweek press conference. "I just came a little short. But I knew the medical staff and the trainers and, in reality, everyone involved, the coaches, came up with a good plan and I trusted what they had to say.
The discovery of Griffin's career with the Redskins after being the offensive rookie of 2012 as an NFL player is a caveat in many respects. The memorable rookie season ended with a knee injury that prevented Griffin from qualifying for a playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. Griffin, like Wentz, underwent surgery and targeted a return to the opening day. Unlike Wentz, Griffin had a promotional slogan for his schedule and he achieved his goal.
The question of whether this has been an important part of what went wrong is debatable. But when Griffin, now on his third NFL team and relegated to a backup role in Baltimore after being out of the league last season, reflected before the Ravens season on his league debut, he said he had to learn his lessons and his limitations the difficult way.
"I was a little reckless," Griffin said. "Everyone thinks they are Superman. I had to learn that I am human. But there are some things that God has blessed me to do what others can not do, and I have to maximize those things. I think that's where I did the most.
[You don’t have to be very rough to rough the QB in today’s NFL]
Wentz said this week that he will be careful to do what a quarter needs to do on the ground to protect himself. He will play with a knee brace for the rest of the season, he said, on the recommendation of his doctors. Wentz said he knew he should keep his enthusiasm on Sunday, although Pederson acknowledged that it could be difficult for his quarterback.
"There will always be this high emotion, and everyone [with] anticipation to take the field, "said Pederson. "And you want to somehow experience what you feel. It's a bit like his first [NFL] restart . . . It will be a good feeling. It will be good for our city. It will be good for the team, of course. I'm just looking forward to Sunday. "
Frank Reich was the offensive coordinator of the Eagles until he became the Colts' head coach. He's back at Lincoln Financial Field, and he knows what to expect when Wentz takes the lead.
"It will be an electric atmosphere," Reich said mid-week. "Carson is a rising young superstar in this league. This city has really embraced it. He kissed the city.
Wentz is also doing nothing to meet expectations about how he and the Eagles will play.
"We expect to start quickly, play fast, click," said Wentz. "So I think it's a realistic expectation. Now it's just football. It is not always like that. So, these things happen and you have to learn how to balance those streams and flows of the game and everything. But I think we all expect high expectations here. "
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