DeVonta Smith misses Eagles practice, Nakobe Dean returns but is limited

It's game week! The Philadelphia Eagles are preparing for the first preseason contest of their three-game slate. As you might expect the Birds are working.

Following their open practice at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, they returned to their home stadium for another practice session on Wednesday. This time they didn't bring 50,000 enthusiastic fans with them.

They got a quick workout in on Tuesday. Wednesday's session is the second of three straight days of workouts. Let's discuss the wounded as that's always an interesting discussion.

DeVonta Smith misses Eagles practice on Wednesday. Nakobe Dean makes his return but in a limited capacity.

We don't expect to see DeVonta Smith play on Saturday. He and the Eagles starters figure to have the night off, but Skinny Batman was probably the most notable absence from Wednesday's practice session. He was excused for personal reasons. We hope everything is okay on that front.

Nakobe Dean is the Eagles starting linebacker for the uninitiated. He didn't see a ton of on-field time with the defensive unit as a rookie, so some have asked if he'd get some work during the Eagles' preseason games, even if said work was minimal. If we were to guess, however, we'd figure he'd sit out as well.

Don't quote us on that. We have been wrong before.

Dean, Philly's new playcaller on defense, sat out of a couple of practice sessions and was listed as day to day because of a lower body issue of his own. He returned on August 9th but in a limited capacity. He's dealing with a calf injury.

Deon Cain also missed the Wednesday practice as did Patrick Johnson. Both have ankle issues. Devon Allen, who was elevated to the active roster on Tuesday, was also limited. He too is dealing with a calf injury.