The Eagles will treat Pats game as if its the third preseason game

Normally, the third preseason game is the benchmark game in which starters get the most work, but this year the Eagles play their third game 4 days after the second, at Cleveland, where they also will open the season Sept. 9.

Eagles coach Andy Reid wants to show the Browns as little as possible, and he certainly won't substantially expose his starters twice in 4 days. As Reid noted Thursday, with travel demands, the team will practice only once between the New England and Cleveland games.

Reid acknowledged there will be more game-planning than for the first preseason game, though "not quite what you do for a regular-season game." Rookie quarterback Nick Foles will back up Michael Vick, with Mike Kafka's broken left hand still healing.

The quote coming from Philly.com. This makes a lot of sense for the Eagles, especially since they open the season against the Browns.

The Patriots are in a similar situation with the schedule, as they will play on Monday against the Eagles and then four days later against the Buccaneers. Not exactly ideal. However, it's unlikely that the Patriots will hold off on practicing in between the two games since they are scheduled to have joint practices with Tampa Bay.

If I had to guess, I would think that the Patriots starters will likely not see a ton of playing time Monday. So you are likely to see a lot of the Eagles starters going against a lot of the Patriots second and third team. Should be fun to watch!