Kevin Kolb is finally ready to take the test that he's studied three years for. After sitting patiently behind Donovan McNabb since he was drafted in the second round of the 2007 draft, Kolb has accumulated all the skills and materials he needs to run the Eagles offense. The only thing left is to prove he's ready on the field.

"I think this offense is built on rhythm and it's built on basically using the short passing game as an extension of the run and just dissecting people," Kolb said, when asked to explain the Eagles' offensive philosophy. "It's also built on a lot on the quarterback's shoulders, making decisions at the line and so my preparation - nobody's ever going to outwork me. So when I try to prepare, I feel like I can have all those things ready by the time it comes game time. So we look forward to exploring some of those things as the season goes on."

Kolb had his two-game trial run early in the 2009 season when McNabb missed two games because of a broken rib. Kolb went 1-1 in those two games, but he impressed by becoming the first player in NFL history to throw for over 300 yards in both of his first two career starts.

"I got a good grasp of that last year and I think that's why it was a good opportunity, a good situation for me last year," Kolb said. "You know, when I played against New Orleans, there was a lot in the air. I hadn't played well at that point. Jeff (Garcia) had come in. Mike (Vick) was here, so there was a lot in the air. So it was good to have a lot thrown at me and have to still go play. And you realize that when you're a player and you go in between the lines, it's a cliché but it's true, you forget everything and you just start playing the game that you know and love and that's what you revert back to. With the responsibility of being a starting quarterback, I'm sure that I haven't seen it all, but I feel like I've got a good grasp on it and I look forward to the challenge of being able to manage it all."

Although the Eagles have watched Kolb pick up the offense closely since he arrived in Philadelphia, they knew he had the mind to play quarterback in this system before Kolb even officially became an Eagle.

"At (the University of) Houston there was a lot required (of) the quarterback," Kolb said of his college football experience in which he started at quarterback for all four years. "I mean, we ran the whole show ... we had so many different options and audibles on each play that there was a lot going through your mind before each snap.

"I remember the first time I met with (offensive coordinator) Marty (Mornhinweg) before the draft, he would ask me every play, 'Hey, what's going through your mind right here?' And I would kind of tell him ... and he told me later on that's what he wanted to see. He wanted to see me go through those things pre-snap like I have to go through it now in this system. So I think that's why they thought it was a good fit and of course those same things will be required of me when I go out there this time."

-- Posted by Bo Wulf, 4:15 p.m., April 5