Reid plays coy, but Eagles won't risk much against Cowboys

Even stone-faced Andy Reid couldn't mask the obvious.

The Eagles' coach wouldn't come out and say that he was resting most of his starters in Sunday's regular-season finale. But with a number of significant regulars injured; with the team coming off a short week; and, most important, with the first round of the playoffs looming, Reid will use an otherwise-meaningless game against the Cowboys to give his reserves some extra playing time.

"Your roster's not big enough where you can" sit every starter, Reid said Friday behind a devilish grin. "You have to be careful."

Reid wouldn't even declare Michael Vick out, even though the quarterback didn't take a practice repetition all week. Kevin Kolb did and will start, team sources have confirmed. Vick suffered a bruised thigh on Tuesday against the Vikings. While Vick is officially listed as questionable for Dallas, of greater concern is how ready he'll be in a week.

"He's making progress, and that's a plus," Reid said.

The NFC East champion Eagles have the No. 3 seed locked up and will face one of three teams - the Packers, Giants, or Buccaneers - on either Jan. 8 or 9. A Saturday game would mean the Eagles, who had the Minnesota game controversially pushed back two days, would have to play three games in 12 days.

"They're aware of it, the crazy schedule there," Reid said of the NFL schedulers. "I'm sure they're taking it into consideration."

An extra day of rest would benefit not only Vick, who has taken a beating this season, but several other Eagles. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson (foot), cornerback Asante Samuel (knee), tackle Winston Justice (knee), and defensive tackle Trevor Laws (shoulder/chest) also didn't practice this week.

Put in this position before, Reid has always elected to rest most of his starters. His decision this time was clouded by a woeful effort against Minnesota in which the Eagles bungled away any hope of a first-round bye.

"We had too many penalties, substitutions were off, and that's my responsibility to get that right," Reid said. "And so, we're aware of that now, now we just have to make sure we do it right and get it straight."

Reid had to weigh the possibility of going into the postseason off a two-game losing streak against resting his regulars. He chose the latter even though the 5-10 Cowboys, out of the playoff picture, are expected to play full-speed.

"They're going to give it all they've got," Kolb said. "They're going to bring what they would normally bring on any Sunday, so we'll have to be sharp."

For young players like tight end Clay Harbor and wide receivers Riley Cooper and Chad Hall, who play with the first team in certain sets, Sunday will give them an opportunity to tune up for the playoffs. For veteran reserves like running back Jerome Harrison or linebacker Omar Gaither, who are in the last year of their contracts, it will be a chance to showcase their skills for the Eagles and other teams.

And for Kolb, it will give the season-opening starter the opportunity to once again run the offense and prepare in case Vick were to get hurt in the playoffs.

"I think that's a good thing and the thing you know about him is that he's going to be fired up if he gets that opportunity," Reid said. "And the way he's handled practices here, he's just been very sharp."

Extra points. Samuel was not fined for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Vikings receiver Sidney Rice, according to the league office. The NFL said the cornerback, who took a $40,000 hit to his pocketbook earlier the season for a similar hit, did not launch himself into Rice. . . . The Eagles cut safety Jamar Wall and signed safety Jamar Adams off the practice squad.