Murphy: Wentz looks promising in debut

A FOOTBALL TEAM is not a democracy, so the folks in the seats might not have a say. Still, by the end of Carson Wentz's Eagles debut on Thursday night, you had the sense that it was going to be awfully hard to get anybody in this town excited about a team quarterbacked by anybody else. Maybe that doesn't matter to the guy who actually makes those decisions. But coaches are made out of the same stuff as the rest of us, and you have to wonder how long Doug Pederson is going to be able to ignore the part of his mind that is joining in the chorus.

It began less than four minutes into the game. They waited until after Sam Bradford played his series. That might've been a noble gesture, or it might've been a coincidence. We'll see what happens the next time everybody returns. Whatever the case, the first chant reached the field at the 11-minute, 40-second mark. We want Wentz, the fans yelled. We know, everybody else thought.

The question is, how bad do the Eagles want him? Or, maybe it isn't the question. Maybe we got the answer on draft day, when they decided to pay two firsts, a second, a third and more for the right to select Wentz. Maybe everything we've heard since then has been professional courtesy. Maybe Sam Bradford is Milton from Office Space, and Howie Roseman and Jeffrey Lurie are the Bobs, and the only reason Bradford is still here is because he's still getting paid.

Actually, when you put it that way . . .

Last night, two things were clear. One, Wentz has plenty to learn between now and whenever he takes the reins as the Eagles starter. Two, he's got the kind of potential that is going to be difficult to ignore. That potential goes well beyond the measurables. Arm strength, mobility, size: those are easy to see on the practice field. But the biggest reason to think that the Eagles really did land themselves a superstar is Wentz's ability to feel what is happening around him without letting it distract his attention from downfield. Again and again, you saw it against the Bucs. On his second snap, he slid up in the pocket and threw a laser to Zach Ertz for a first down. On his fifth snap, he recognized a blitz coming from his blind side, stood tall in the pocket anyway, and delivered a laser while absorbing a crushing hit. The pass was high, and at its velocity it would have been a difficult catch for Ertz. But it was more about the process that led to the pass.

Quarterbacks talk about the internal clock that they need to have in their head. Let it tick too long, and you're left taking a sack or throwing the ball away. Give up on it too quickly, and you're checking down to an outlet receiver for a marginal game. Wentz clearly has a feel for it. It still needs some calibration - particularly later in his outing, he took a number of big hits in the pocket that disrupted his throws. But the fact that he kept getting back up and standing tall and keeping his eyes downfield was impressive to see.

"I love his toughness," Pederson said. "You saw some of the shots he took, stood in the pocket, bounced back from some tough hits."

The biggest hit he took was in the open field, on an option keeper that ended with him getting submarined by a defender and somersaulting to the turf. It was one of several times when he took a second to gather himself before rising back from the grass, but the battering never seemed to affect him.

"I was really impressed with the way he handled himself tonight," Bradford said. "It's probably good to take a couple of those hits to realize you can get back up, just like college."

Bradford has handled the whole situation well, a characteristic that was once again on display Thursday night, when his performance consisted of one pass and two handoffs and then a lot of spectating. Chase Daniel struggled to move the offense, finally giving way to Wentz, much to the delight of the crowd, with just over a minute remaining.

"It was an opportunity to get him into the game early there right before the half and get his feet wet," Pederson said. "He came out, he was in the right frame of mind . . . he made a couple tough runs for us, which we needed, and then completed the ball where it needed to be. By no means is he perfect, or was anybody perfect, but I'm pleased of this first outing and I have to continue working with him on a daily basis to get him to where he needs to be."

There was a lot to like, and a lot to build on, and a lot to make you wonder how long it will be before he's in there full-time.

@ByDavidMurphy