Eagles make it official: Nick Foles will start at QB

PHILADELPHIA – Eagles head coach Doug Pederson revealed the long-awaited secret Monday by announcing that Nick Foles will start at quarterback in the team's opener Thursday night.

Pederson was combative at his press conference the day before, refusing to reveal his starting quarterback between Foles and Carson Wentz, expressing ire about reports over the weekend that had Foles as the starter.

On Monday, Pederson, who was not scheduled to speak to the media, made a brief statement announcing his decision. That came just a few minutes after the Eagles' website reported the decision.

"After consideration of everything about the football team and this decision, Nick Foles is the starter Week 1," Pederson said. "My press conference will be (Tuesday), and I'll answer questions at that time. But I wanted you to hear it from me. It is about the football team, and the best interest of the 53 (man roster). And Nick Foles will be my starter Week 1. Thank you."

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Wentz has been recovering from two torn knee ligaments suffered last December. He has been going through team 11-on-11 drills for the past two weeks. But the Eagles apparently wanted to give him more time to heal.

Pederson said Sunday that Wentz has not yet been cleared for contact by the  team's medical staff. He was listed as practicing on a limited basis on Monday, the first day that teams had to provide injury reports.

Last Friday, Dr. James Bradley, who performed Wentz's surgery, told NBC Sports Philadelphia that the Eagles should take the cautious approach in the decision about whether to start Wentz at quarterback. 

The nine-month mark for Wentz's surgery would come in mid September. So there's a possibility that Wentz could miss the second game of the season Sept. 16 against Tampa Bay.

Foles, of course, has experience running the offense. He took over for Wentz after Wentz tore his ACL and LCL last Dec. 10 against the Rams, and led the Eagles to the Super Bowl, earning the championship game's MVP award.

When asked what Foles showed during the playoff run last season, wide receiver Mack Hollins replied: "That he can put jewelry on our fingers, and that's what he did."

Added fellow receiver Nelson Agholor: "He's a great quarterback. We've always been fortunate to have two great quarterbacks ... It doesn't matter to me (who's playing). We get reps with both (Foles and Wentz) of those guys." 

Up until Monday, Pederson had tried hard to keep the decision a secret, admitting it was part of a competitive advantage.

But it was proving to be difficult. The starting quarterback gets by far the most reps in practice leading up to the game. Before this week, Wentz had been getting his share of reps since returning to the team 11-on-11 drills.

Now, those are going to Foles, although offensive coordinator Mike Groh said Wentz is getting some, too. That way, the Eagles can keep him fresh when he's able to return.

"We obviously love the fact that Nick Foles is here, and he's been our starting quarterback since Carson went down with the injury," Groh said. "We've had a lot of success with Nick. We’ve got a lot of confidence and faith in Nick and the way that he's going to play and the way that guys are going to play with him."

All along, Wentz had said that Week 1 of the regular season was his goal for a return. But he admitted throughout the preseason that it was going to be "close."

He was close, just not close enough for Week 1.

Smallwood earns his spot

Wilmington native Wendell Smallwood said making the Eagles roster this season was his toughest challenge compared to his previous two seasons. The Eagles brought in three running backs to challenge for the fourth spot, behind Jay Ajayi, Darren Sproles and Corey Clement.

Smallwood beat them all out – Donnel Pumphrey, the Eagles' fourth-round pick in 2017, veteran Matt Jones and undrafted free agent Josh Adams, who was signed to the practice squad.

"It was a hard camp, had guys down, guys were missing, I had to take on a lot of reps, a lot of extra things, had to step up," Smallwood said. "On special teams, too. It wasn’t just about offense. They harped that on me. I had to get it done."

Because of his improvement on special teams, Smallwood said he expects to be active on game day Thursday night.

"If I wasn’t going to be, why keep me?" he said.

Wing tips

WR Alshon Jeffery (shoulder) and Mack Hollins (groin) didn't practice Monday. For Jeffery, it's a strong indication that he won't be ready to play Thursday night. He was just activated off the physically unable to perform list last Friday. Hollins (groin) said he plans to play. Tight end Richard Rodgers (knee) also didn't practice. Wentz and Ajayi (foot) practiced on a limited basis.

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.