4 observations from Eagles-Ravens

The Eagles second preseason game came with a bit more fanfare than the first. Saturday night marked the beginning of the Sam Bradford era as Eagles quarterback. It also brought the debut of running back DeMarco Murray.

Philadelphia did not disappoint its home crowd, delivering a 40-17 win over the Baltimore Ravens at Lincoln Financial Field. Here are five observations from the game.

1. Sam Bradford got what he wanted, kind of

Bradford has said that he wanted to get hit to see how his body would react. He got just that on his first drive.

Terrell Suggs came barreling at him on a handoff to DeMarco Murray and hit him low, which led to a roughing the passer penalty. It was a dirty hit, but Bradford got right up and walked it off, an encouraging sign for Eagles fans worried about how his surgically repaired knee will hold up.

A few plays later, Bradford took a big hit after he released the ball and was slow to get up. He took a second, but finished off the 84-yard drive that ended with a Ryan Matthews touchdown run.

It was Bradford's only drive of the day. He was 3-for-5 for 35 yards. When he got back to the sideline, it seemed he was unhappy about being taken out after just one drive. One can't fault the guy for wanting to play more, but the coaching staff did what they thought was best.

Bradford was a bit rusty, but looked good overall. His throws were high, which is a product of not playing in a game for a year, but got better as the drive went on. Expect him to play most of the first quarter, even into the second next week against the Jets.

2. The running game can hold its own, too

We got our first look at reigning NFL rushing champion DeMarco Murray early in the game. He took his first handoff from Bradford for a seven yard gain, falling forward for about five of them.

Murray ended his night with five carries for 17 yards and a touchdown. He also caught one pass for 14 yards.

It is pretty obvious that his downhill running style is going to do great things for the Eagles' fast-paced offense. From what we saw on Saturday, he looks like he is not a guy that is going to have many carries for negative yardage, like someone that was in the Birds' backfield last season (he probably won't be hosting private parties, either).

If Murray is not reason enough for Eagles fans to be excited about the running game, Ryan Mathews showed flashes of what he is capable of. He had three carries for 19 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown run on the opening drive of the game.

The two-headed monster of Murray and Mathews will be well-complemented with dashes of Darren Sproles, whose role is undetermined. Regardless, the three will be fun to watch in the backfield.

3. Kenjon Barner is forcing his way on the team

Chip Kelly said last week that if Kenjon Barner kept playing like he was, they would have to make room for him on the 53-man roster when the time comes. He had a 92-yard punt return for a touchdown last week.

Barner did it again this week with a 68-yard punt return for a touchdown, cutting back from the far sideline to the near and avoiding any would-be Ravens defenders.

The Oregon product spent last season with the Eagles practice squad after suffering an injury late in the preseason. That experience seems to have manifested into something that could help him stick around come September, even if it is only on special teams.

Sproles handled much of the punt and kick returns last year, but if Barner can keep it up he may steal some playing time.

4. Yes, it's the preseason, but the defense looked really good

We all know it is the preseason, and the scores of games really don't mean anything. But this one was different. The Eagles defense gave up just 17 points, and none until the 14:18 mark of the fourth quarter.

The starting defense, minus the main linebackers, kept Joe Flacco in check for the short time he was in the game. They managed two interceptions, by Walter Thurmond on a nice tip play by Nolan Carroll and another by Byron Maxwell on a Flacco overthrow.

Flacco was held to 3-for-7 passing for just 23 yards. His longest completed pass was 13 yards. The secondary did a very good job on downfield coverage and made Flacco check down more than he probably wanted to.

The run defense was also stout. There was not much happening inside the tackles for the Ravens, who did not threaten into Eagles territory until late in the third quarter. Baltimore had only 180 yards in the first half, in which the starters mostly came out of the game early in the second quarter.

When Kiko Alonso, DeMeco Ryans, Mychal Kendricks and Marcus Smith are all back and healthy, the defense has the potential to be really great.