At about the same time tonight that former Eagles star QB Donovan McNabb will take the field with his new Washington Redskins, Kevin Kolb, the biggest reason the Eagles traded away McNabb to their division rivals, will take his first snap under center as "the man" for Philadelphia. The Eagles are 3-point favorites on Bodog's NFL odds against visiting Jacksonville in the preseason opener for both.
The Eagles were a pass-heavy team with McNabb – usually a 60-40 pass-run mix – but plan to be closer to 50-50 under Kolb. The team also will get back to the roots of the West Coast offense, which means more play-action and shorter passes and fewer of those 60-yard bombs. Kolb certainly has many weapons at his disposal in DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Brent Celek and LeSean McCoy. The Eagles starters are expected to play only a quarter tonight. Michael Vick will run the second-string offense for the second quarter and half of the third. Two offensive line starters will sit.
Jacksonville has been a pretty good preseason team under Coach Jack Del Rio. Other than last year 1-3 exhibition record, the Jags haven't had a losing preseason record under Del Rio. They have been 3-1 every year other than 2009 and 2005. Star running back Maurice Jones-Drew is expected to only get about three carries before sitting. Quarterback David Garrard should play a quarter or so. No. 1 draft pick Tyson Alulalu, a defensive tackle of of Cal, will not play due to a minor injury and neither will the team's two starting offensive tackles. A big focus for the Jags in the preseason is at guard, where Vince Manuwai, Kynan Forney and Justin Smiley are battling for a starting spot
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The best quarterback the Washington Redskins franchise has had in many years will make his debut under center tonight as Donovan McNabb and the Skins host the Buffalo Bills in the exhibition opener for both. Washington is a 3.5-point favorite on Bodog's NFL odds
The 33-year-old McNabb, a six-time Pro Bowler, has been praised lavishly by new Redskins coach Mike Shanahan. McNabb, by the way, still doesn't have a contract that extends beyond this season, although the team says it plans to keep him. Under coach Jim Zorn and QB Jason Campbell, the Redskins offense averaged just 16.6 points per game the previous two seasons. Just five teams scored fewer total points in that stretch than Washington. Shanahan says the first-team offense is expected to be on the field for only 15-18 plays against the Bills. The Redskins are 111-115-2 in preseason play since 1961.
The Bills, meanwhile, are expected to be one of the NFL's worst teams overall this year. And their offense is expected to be among the league's worst as it was last year. In fact, in the 2009 preseason, the first-stringers played 15 possessions without scoring a touchdown. Buffalo will sit three starters on the offensive line tonight for various injuries. Most of the Bills' starters are likely to play numerous series. It appears Trent Edwards has a firm grasp on the team's No. 1 quarterback job, so the Bills will play four QBs tonight, including Edwards. This game also marks the Bills head coaching debut of Chan Gailey as well as the first game for 2010 No. 1 draft pick C.J. Spiller.
The last time the Redskins and Bills met in preseason was in 2008 at FedExField, with the Redskins winning 17-14. In the regular season and postseason, the Redskins and Bills have met 11 times, with Buffalo holding a 7-4 advantage.
