Wentz gets just enough protection

Carson Wentz went one way last August and his rib cage went another. And if he didn’t realize it at the time, or even if he just didn’t want to acknowledge it, Doug Pederson would forever be scared by the crack.

Wentz was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 draft. More, he represented an historically large investment in their future by the Eagles, who paid heavily to move up and gain his rights. So when the quarterback had a rib broken in his first preseason game, Pederson had reason to draw a conclusion: Don’t let that happen again.

To the Linc Thursday, then, the story rolled, a little over a year later. Wentz having proven as a rookie that he barely needed training camp, let alone the street-hustle that is the NFL’s exhibition season, there would be little reason to continue to expose him to summertime violence.

Less clear was how little of that Pederson would be willing to risk.

Just days after semi-announcing that his first-team offense would play up to three quarters of the Birds’ third preseason game — that something of an NFL standard — Pederson saw something frightening in what would be a 38-31 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

He saw Wentz under a rush, under attack, and in peril. That he also saw him throw a 50-yard touchdown pass to Torrey Smith and a 15-yard TD strike to Alshon Jeffery convinced him he’d seen enough for one offseason. So to the sideline he would order Wentz, who likely will remain there through that Week 4 gimmick at the Meadowlands against the New York Jets. Thus, the next time the quarterback will be seen in public will be the Sept. 10 opener in Washington.

Until then, there will be two haunting questions, both legitimate, even if slightly laced in manufactured football conversation. The first: Has Wentz had enough preseason time to work with his newer offense? The second: Why was he under such an avalanche of teal uniforms Thursday night anyway?

By the middle of a week in which the Eagles had practiced jointly with the Dolphins, there was one persistent, in-camp theme: That Eagles’ offensive line … it was pretty good. Even Miami tackle Ndamukong Suh, five times a Pro Bowl defensive lineman, called the Birds’ first-team offensive line “elite.” That created headlines. It also created a fresh excitement.

For the first time — the only time, more than likely — in the preseason, the Eagles’ line of Jason Peters, Isaac Seumalo, Jason Kelce, Brandon Brooks and Lane Johnson would play together, and, it would have followed, showed what the carry-on was about. “It is definitely,” Brooks announced, “going to be something special.”

As it happened, it was leaky and undependable, exposing Wentz to a sack and an interception in the four series he’d play, along with a couple of hurried plays. Throughout the preseason, Pederson has dismissed anything that his offense would try,

successful or not, with the chant that the Birds were not game-planning. Lost in that rationalization was that it was unlikely that opposing coaches were pulling all-nighters, either. But, OK. Everyone understands the preseason agreements, written and otherwise.

Yet even those seem to be changing. When Wentz left in the first quarter Thursday, it meant that he had not seen the second half of any preseason game. He would finish his preseason with three touchdown passes, three sacks and an interception, throwing for 241 yards on 16-of-23 efficiency.

Pederson didn’t declare, exactly, how long Wentz would play against the Dolphins. But the strong hint was that it would be at least until the later-arriving fans would wander in from the parking lot.

“Typically in this game, as you know, two quarters in a half, and a little bit into the third,” he said in his last training-camp press chitchat. “But I haven’t made that decision yet.”

So he had options. Among them were the option to see Wentz connect with Smith and Jeffery, and then to give him protection that his offensive line should have been providing.

Despite being pestered by the Dolphins, Wentz did look crisp at times Thursday, completing six of 10 passes for 129 yards. He showed an impressive grasp of the geometry of the passing game, hitting receivers in perfect spots. He finally connected with Smith. And the running game was slightly improved.

If the Eagles are to be a playoff team this season, they will have to survive a difficult early schedule. They did not need Wentz spending those first few weeks in a sling. Last year, Wentz barely played at all after his first preseason game, didn’t become the starter until Sam Bradford was traded just before the regular-season opener, and then had a satisfying rookie season. So Pederson saw plenty. And he didn’t see his quarterback retreating to the trainer’s room.

For a head coach still in fear of hearing that crack again, that was a reasonable exchange.