The Philadelphia Eagles' preseason opener against the Baltimore Ravens is a memory the fan base would like to forget about quickly.
Thankfully, that might be the case, as the Eagles returned to the practice field to begin preparing for an intense week of joint practices with the New England Patriots, followed by a game between the two teams. This first practice brought good news the Eagles desperately needed.
Many Eagles reporters said new WR1 DeVonta Smith returned to practice after missing more than a week of work due to a hamstring injury. Smith was limited in the practice, though, so he did not get much work. That might change with the upcoming joint practices.
DeVonta Smith returns to Eagles practice when the team needed him the most
This is great news for an Eagles offense that has been inconsistent throughout the first three weeks of training camp. The wide receivers have been decent, but not at Smith's level.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts has built good chemistry with Dontayvion Wicks and Darius Cooper early on. There have been some struggles with Hurts and Hollywood Brown.
As for rookie first-round pick Makai Lemon, he remains out with his injury. Lemon is now approaching two weeks of missing practice, which is becoming a concern.
At least with Smith back in practice, that will ease the Lemon concerns. Smith already has great chemistry with Hurts and can jump right back into it and help elevate the offense.
There are two weeks left in training camp for Smith to get into shape and get into a rhythm with the Eagles' new-look offense. This week will be a good challenge with the Eagles-Patriots joint practice and working against different cornerbacks.
Smith will be needed after the offense shows early signs of trouble in the preseason. Philly's offense with backups and third-string players finished with 159 yards, six first downs, zero third downs made, and seven points put up.
The starters have a place to start working from, and we need to make sure that doesn't happen in the regular season. They most likely won't take the field at all for the preseason, so the joint practice will be the place to get the job done for the Eagles.
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Eagles fans will have to wait and see how this all plays out, but at least Smith is back to save the day for the offense.
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