Two of the key additions for the Eagles will likely make their debut in front of the home crowd at Lincoln Financial Field on Thursday night.
Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery and cornerback Ronald Darby are expected to play, head coach Doug Pederson said on Tuesday. Jeffery was held out by the coaches last week against Green Bay, while Darby was acquired by the team on Friday.
Even if they play, don't expect to see them out on the field for a long time. Pederson expects a series or two "at the most" for the starters against the Bills.
"I want to see us execute better. I want to see us take care of the football better. I felt like we were a little sloppy and loose in the second half with some of the turnovers," Pederson said. "I thought our first units, to start the game the way they did, came out ready to go. We played a lot of people in that game and sometimes the game can be a little fast for guys that aren't used to that. But just overall execution.
"We've got to clean up stuff. We're still in Training Camp mode, so we're still evaluating our players, putting them in situations to try to be successful. But just clean up a few things and try to win the game."
One position to watch Thursday could be offensive tackle. Jason Peters was excused from Tuesday's practice for personal reasons. If he is not back with the team in time, Lane Johnson will start at left tackle, and Matt Tobin will go at right tackle with Halapoulivaati Vaitai sidelined with a knee injury.
"Lane obviously worked at left tackle all spring. Big V (Vaitai) obviously at the time was working right tackle. But this will be a good opportunity if something were to happen," Pederson said.
Live coverage begins Thursday at 6:30 p.m. with the Kickoff Show presented by Axalta on PhiladelphiaEagles.com and the Eagles Mobile App. Bills-Eagles can be seen locally on NBC10.
