Doug Pederson isn’t publicly concerned with Nelson Agholor at all. Philly.com:

Doug Pederson can publicly overlook Nelson’s Agholor’s mistakes and illogically praise his ability to do everything but catch the ball consistently, but if the Eagles coach and his assistants are neglecting to criticize the receiver behind closed doors, they are doing him a disservice…And yet, Pederson said Monday that Agholor won’t likely play in the preseason finale Thursday because he didn’t want to “risk an injury” and because the second-year receiver is “right on track where he needs to be.”

Doug Pederson plans to use players the way they’ll get the most success. Philly Voice:

When you have four different running backs all with different styles and skill sets, maybe you don’t use them all the same exact way, as we noted when we predicted Darren Sproles will be used more logically this season. When you have a third tight end with very good receiving ability, maybe you actually, you know, let him play. When you have a receiver with run after the catch ability, but not necessarily polished receiving skills, maybe you find easy ways to get him the football so he can put his explosiveness to use. The above are extremely logical concepts that Chip Kelly didn’t seem to grasp in his time with the Philadelphia Eagles. However, they are not lost on new head coach Doug Pederson. In the third preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts, one of the more obvious takeaways was how Pederson maximized his players’ skill sets.

Doug Pederson is focusing on younger receivers. Philly.com:

“Sometimes as a quarterback, you like that, though. You can mold them a little more. They’re eager to learn. They want to listen,” Bradford said. “Sometimes it’s easier to take control of some of those guys, as opposed to an older, veteran receiver. I’ve really enjoyed everyone in that room, and it’s going to be fun.”…Matthews and Huff are third-year players, Agholor and Green-Beckham second-year, and the fifth guy is going to be an undrafted rookie, unless there’s another signing or trade. Pederson was asked Monday how he weighs what someone has done – say, Randle’s 128 catches for 1,735 yards and 11 touchdowns the past two seasons – against what someone with no NFL résumé is showing in preseason. “That’s a fine line,” Pederson said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of history and a lot of film on those players, and a lot of circumstances. It can just come down to who is performing right now . . . You want guys that are all on board and doing things right, and at the end of the day you’ve got to make tough decisions.”

Mychal Kendricks might play in pre-season game four. Philly.com:

What’s going on here? Kendricks sat out the Eagles’ first two preseason games with a hamstring injury then was on the field in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s victory over the Indianapolis Colts – you know, the fourth quarter, with the backups and the maybes and the never-will-bes. Now, per Pederson, Kendricks might suit up against the Jets. Weird. Or perhaps not so weird. “He hasn’t played. He hasn’t played,” Pederson said. “We want to see him get game and live reps. That’s the bottom line.”That’s a strong sell there by a first-year NFL head coach. But it appears Kendricks will be the only prospective Eagles starter to play against the Jets, and having him do so smacks of the sort of message-sending test of an athlete’s mettle seen at all levels of sport.

Sam Bradford is excited but realistic. Philly.com:


“I think last year, after that third preseason game (when he completed 10 of 10 passes and threw for three touchdowns in just three series against Green Bay), everyone thought we were going to the Super Bowl. But there’s very little game-planning that goes into the preseason. I’m sure Green Bay didn’t game-plan to stop us. Last year, they probably hadn’t even practiced (against) our offense. It was nice to go out and execute the way we did last year in that third preseason game, but I don’t really think anyone in the locker room bought into the fact that because we looked great in a preseason game, it was going to be easy during the regular season.”

Jordan Matthews plans to be ready for week one. Philly Voice:

Over the first three Philadelphia Eagles preseason games, there has been quite a bit of grumbling about the lack of quality play from the receiver position. That would of course not include Jordan Matthews, who has been held out of practice since August 5th, when he injured his knee on a hard hit by CB Jalen Mills. Matthews returned to practice today, although Doug Pederson said that he was limited. “Jordan Matthews will actually practice today, warm-up individual, group install and give him a rep or two in our 7-on-7 today,” said Pederson prior to practice. “So he’s on track [and] doing a great job with his recovery and [he] should be ready to go, obviously, next week.”