Philadelphia paid a small fortune to move up to the second spot in first round the 2016 NFL Draft to select former North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz. First year head coach Doug Pederson had every intention of letting his quarterback of the future sit back and learn the various nuances of the position he once played for the Eagles while another No. 2 pick Donovan McNabb studied the game as a backup way back in 1999.
Wentz's time as a backup quickly came to an end when Philly was handed a golden opportunity to trade then-starter Sam Bradford to Minnesota for the first round pick it gave up to land Wentz in the first place. His first season at the helm as the Eagles' latest starting quarterback proved to be a much more valuable experience than carrying a clip board on the sidelines. Wentz started all 16 games as a rookie and ended the season with 3,782 passing yards and 16 touchdown throws. He was also picked off 14 times while suffering 33 sacks in that baptism by fire. The Eagles went 7-9 and missed the playoffs for the third-straight season.
Tight end Zach Ertz was the team' leading receiver in 2016 with 78 receptions for 816 yards and four touchdowns. Jordan Matthews caught 73 balls for 804 yards and three touchdowns as the No.1 receiver and Nelson Agholor struggled in the No. 2 spot with 36 catches for 365 yards and two scores. Phiily's offense ended the year ranked 24th in the NFL in passing yards.
Flash forward to Thursday night's Week 3 preseason matchup against Miami. The highlights came early and often starting with Wentz hooking up with his new No. 2 receiver Torrey Smith for a 50-yard touchdown pass. These are the type of big play scores that have been missing from this offense ever since former head coach Chip Kelly decided to part ways with DeSean Jackson before the 2014 regular season. Wentz was not done for the night just yet and later in the first quarter he threw a 14-yard scoring strike to his new No. 1 receiver Alshon Jeffrey. Pederson had saw enough and decided to give this trio a seat on the bench for the rest of the night.
Jeffrey, from Chicago and Smith, from San Francisco were two of the Eagles' biggest offseason free agent additions along with former New England running back LeGarrette Blount. While this group of skill players may not be as formidable as ones that teams like the Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers boast in their starting lineup, they have the potential to make Philadelphia's offense much better than it was in Wentz's rookie year.
You should never take too much away from preseason games, but the second-year vet did look dialed-in with his new duo of receivers in what was his final tune-up before the games start counting for real in the standings.
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