Bowen: Eagles could use a good wideout like DGB - if he delivers

PITTSBURGH - If the Eagles had played this week's preseason game at home, Dorial Green-Beckham's brief appearance might have produced an ovation rivaling the return of Chase Utley.

Green-Beckham, an Eagles wide receiver since Tuesday, with no practice time or playbook tutoring under his belt, entered the Birds' 17-0 preseason victory over the host Steelers for two third-quarter red zone plays Thursday night. On the first, he couldn't come up with an underthrown end-zone fade from Chase Daniel. On the second, he ran a dummy route while Kenjon Barner knifed 5 yards up the middle for the Eagles' only offensive touchdown.

But what's that song by Widespread Panic? "Hope in a Hopeless World"?

(While one might assume a band would take such a name from listening to Philly sports-talk radio, apparently they are from Athens, Ga. Go figure.)

Thursday was another game without Jordan Matthews, recovering from the knee injury inflicted upon him in practice by Jalen Mills, and the results from the wideout corps looked maybe a little teensy-tiny bit better this time, if you squinted and crossed your fingers. Nelson Agholor went way up and made a nice 22-yard catch. Of course, he followed that by dropping a ball thrown behind him on the very next snap, but, small steps.

Rueben Randle caught two passes for 10 yards, which is one more catch for 7 more yards than he managed in the preseason opener against the Bucs. And Randle didn't look this time as if he was being forced to participate at gunpoint. Again, small steps.

One catch for 5 yards and a drop for Josh Huff, in 21 snaps. Well, some things never change. Nada from Chris Givens, in a dozen snaps.

But the people's favorite training-camp find, undrafted rookie Paul Turner, again dazzled, making the catch of the preseason so far, reaching back onehanded for a Daniel sideline fade, warding off the defender and coming down with it for a team-high 23-yard gain.

Overall, though, it was easy to see why the fan base is swooning over the so-far unrealized potential of Green-Beckham. It's possible there has never been a team in more need of a receiver to step forward with some star-level chops.

Coach Doug Pederson helped emphasize that huge problem by not really trying to do much with tight end Zach Ertz against the Steelers – 17 snaps, three catches, 24 yards. (And Ertz, as TV analyst Mike Mayock pointed out, probably could have run a better route on what could have been a TD pass to him, on the play before Cody Parkey's 40-yard field goal late in the first half.)

Green-Beckham faced reporters after the game, still seeming a little bewildered and befuddled over having been traded by the Tennessee team that drafted him 40th overall only 15 months ago.

He said the Titans told him only that they thought the trade, for veteran reserve offensive lineman Dennis Kelly, was "best for both sides."

Green-Beckham spoke of the need to put in extra time with the playbook and the coaches to get up to speed – the exact sort of thing the Titans didn't think he did enough of in his 32-catch, 549-yard rookie season, or this spring and summer.

New Tennessee coach Mike Mularkey was quoted just before the trade as saying Green-Beckham needed to do more extra work.

"I just felt like, he talked potential, he wanted me to do more, and I tried to do everything I could do and things didn't work out," Green-Beckham said, as reporters crowded a half-dozen deep around his corner locker stall in the visitors' quarters at Heinz Field. "It's tough, but you've just got to stay on top of everything. They want little details, you've got to give little details. You've got to do everything you're supposed to do and everything that's asked.

"I felt like I stayed after, caught some balls, came in early. I felt like I did a lot of extra work there, and I'm still going to continue to stay on my game and continue to do those things."

Green-Beckham's progress will be chronicled with the sort of obsession previously reserved for Carson Wentz. Green-Beckham might have a lot more to do with the Eagles' 2016 fortunes.

Other observations from the second preseason tilt:

* It wasn't reassuring to see Darren Sproles caught from behind by Ryan Shazier on a screen, but Shazier did have a running start. And he's good.

* One of the things Mayock is best at as analyst is chronicling the misadventures of gunners and the guys trying to block them, something he knows from his own brief NFL playing experience. He illustrated how rookie safety Blake Countess was having a rough night.

* Cornerback Aaron Grymes wasn't playing very well at all until he beat Sammie Coates to the corner of the end zone and came up with that spectacular interception, which, unfortunately for him led to an AC sprain, a source close to the situation said. Grymes, a Canadian Football League vet, could miss the final two preseason games, but is an intriguing player, the kind a team might think it can develop.

* Defensive end Marcus Smith had a neutral-zone infraction and a sack. Still a long way from looking like a first-round pick, with the clock ticking. Stephen Means is much more physical.

* Terrible holding penalty by Isaac Seumalo, but on several plays, you could see why the coaches think the third-round rookie is capable of starting at left guard. Lots of power and athleticism.

* Forgot until I was rewatching that the Eagles started their 87-yard, 15-play third-quarter touchdown drive with back-to-back penalties. As unimpressive as Daniel was in the preseason opener, that's how impressive he was Thursday. His offensive line, with the addition of "Limbo Lane" Johnson at right tackle, was way better, and Daniel showed why Pederson wanted him here. Strong play when he read the blitz and zipped the ball to Byron Marshall over the middle as Daniel was being leveled by a linebacker.

* Reserve guard Barrett Jones, a guy I've paid little attention to up to now, had a really nice game, despite a holding penalty early in the third quarter. Given the tumult up front right now amid the uncertainty over Johnson's potential PED suspension, might be worth keeping an eye on that guy.

* Amazing how much better the QB and the receivers look when the running game is working, as we saw in the second half, when Barner (six carries, 41 yards) and the backup o-line got rolling.

* The Eagles tried Dillon Gordon, the undrafted rookie tight end-turned-offensive lineman from LSU, at fullback. He didn't seem to do much there.

@LesBowen

Blog: philly.com/Eaglesblog