After the news broke about veteran quarterback Michael Vick being unable to play in Week 9 against the Oakland Raiders, the Philadelphia Eagles had a lot of uncertainty looming about who would be the starter on Sunday in Oakland.
Initially, the Eagles anticipated rookie Matt Barkley getting the start against the Raiders, but now it appears Nick Foles will be good to go according to Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com:
Quarterback Nick Foles will start against the Raiders on Sunday. Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly made that announcement on Wednesday, a day after the backup quarterback was cleared to practice following a concussion suffered Oct. 20 against Dallas.
With Foles dealing with concussion symptoms, the status of the second-year pro was up in the air heading into Week 9. Fortunately for the Eagles, Foles was given the green light and will get back on the field.
Now that Foles will be the starter against the Raiders, Oakland will have their work cut out for them against a quarterback who is a considerable upgrade over Barkely and possibly even Vick at this point in time. Foles brings a different dynamic to the Eagles in comparison to Vick and will challenge the vastly improved Raiders defense on Sunday.
Despite the upgrade at
the quarterback position for Philadelphia, the Eagles are currently 3-point underdogs heading into the matchup with the Raiders. Oakland will be trying to record a second straight and the fourth win of the season to get back to .500 (4-4) while the Eagles try and bounce back after losing two straight.