Carson Wentz doesn’t need preseason reps in order to return by week one

Who said that Carson Wentz could not play the first game of the season without playing in the preseason first?

Big news made its rounds on Saturday afternoon, as the Philadelphia Eagles got word that quarterback Carson Wentz can finally participate in 11-on-11 practice. We all knew that Wentz was ahead of schedule with his recovery, but the chances of him playing during week one are becoming more and more realistic every day.

Back in the springtime, Wentz was making significant strides in his recovery. Had he not been sporting a knee brace in practice, a non-football fan could’ve never recognized that Wentz tore his ACL less than half a year ago at the time. Although he wasn’t permitted to play against a live defense at the time, Wentz is once again, able to play in a live scrimmage. With a redshirt on though, of course.

Ever since Wentz met with the media for the first time since his injury, his goal has been set on returning week one. While many of us assumed that he was just overly optimistic, it is apparent that Wentz knows a lot more about his robust recovery than any of us do. So with that, he just might end up starting off the season on time.

How do the Eagles approach this?

Eagles head coach Doug Pederson addressed the situation last week. When he was asked about the possibility of Wentz playing against the Atlanta Falcons, Pederson made it clear that he believes Wentz would need at the very least, one full week of practice doing 11-on-11 drills. And although he did not mention anything about preseason, many people assumed that if Wentz doesn’t get any preseason reps in, then he will most likely not play during week one.

First off, let’s take a trip down memory lane to when OTAs had first begun. Carson Wentz was very transparent to the media about preseason playing time. He made it very clear that he had no intentions of playing in the preseason, nor did he believe he needed the extra reps in order to return to the regular season.

Now, ESPN’s Adam Schefter doubled-down on Wentz’s statement by making it clear that the third-year veteran will not play in the preseason, but his absence from the meaningless games will not dictate whether he returns by opening night or not.

Also, remember that Wentz missed three-quarters of the preseason back in 2016 when he was just a rookie. He suffered a hairline rib fracture, which kept him out for the majority of the preseason. Yet, Wentz still opened up the season as the starter despite having little-to-no experience in the NFL. The bottom line is that if the medical staff says he is good to go, then why wait if he’s not actually being rushed back? Time will tell if he is truly ready or not, but don’t panic if you haven’t seen Wentz play in the preseason. He can and will still play if ready.