WR Jeremy Maclin and WR Steve Smith have returned to practice. Andy Reid updates the injury situation today!

The addition of these two weapons to a group that already had DeSean Jackson, Michael Vick, LeSean McCoy and Ronnie Brown playing well bodes well for the upcoming season.

Steve Smith is practicing for the first time as an Eagle today. Jeremy Maclin is also back.

Maclin is coming off a season in which he was just 36 yards shy of his first 1,000-yard campaign. Steve Smith is a former 100-catch Pro Bowler coming back from microfracture knee surgery.

The Eagles, who have never had two 1,-000-yard wideouts in a season, could very well see three guys eclipse that mark this year — if Maclin and Smith are healthy. (We’ll explore that as we get closer to our season preview.)

Of course, a lot of what the Eagles do offensively will depend upon protecting Vick and his blindside. The receivers won’t help with that much, unless you count having more weapons so you can keep Brent Celek in to block more. Still, that’s not what you want from a guy with Celek’s potential.

Maclin and Smith returning presents us with good news, but it’s still not enough to warrant any Dream Team monikers until the line shows up.

For those who have been living under Andy Reid’s stomach the last few weeks, Maclin battled what was believed to be mononucleosis this spring, losing 15 pounds in the process. Then, before training camp started, we found out Maclin was still ill and was home. He eventually reported to camp, only to go back home to St. Louis for more tests.

Nobody could figure out what was wrong with him. We learned last night that the third year player simply suffered from a viral infection. For a time, though, he feared the worst as he was undergoing tests for lymphoma. In fact, he had lymph nodes removed from his belly button area and tested. He is cancer free.

Jeremy Maclin is cleared to rejoin the Eagles and get a start on his 2011 season. But, the process he went through brought to light the problem with social media and rumors.

Forget football. It’s good to see this kid’s health is in order. Really, that’s the most important thing. Of course, that’s kind of the point here. This was HIS health, HIS life.

During the last two-plus weeks, the media started out wanting answers. As it became apparent that something serious might be going on, the media backed off a bit, simply stating there were no developments. Nothing crazy from the rumor mill was “reported.” This was beyond football.

Problem is, the bloggers, Twitter masses and Facebook folks weren’t held — or holding themselves — to higher standards. (Yes, I’m a blogger. But, I have a journalism background and do try to hold myself to ethical standards.)

The rush to be “first” and be able to say “see, I told you” led to baseless, useless rumors about a man’s life. In fact, as he told Foxsports.com:

“That’s first and foremost, I want everyone to know I’m fine, I’m healthy,” Maclin told FOXSports.com on Wednesday, only an hour after receiving word from his doctor that his final test came back negative. “I was tested for everything, and every single test came back negative. I don’t have mono, I don’t have AIDS, leukemia — all the things people were guessing on, there was nothing. I was being tested for lymphoma and thank God everything has come back negative.

“I wanted my privacy on this until I had answers. I don’t like to talk unless I have all the answers about what I’m talking about. It was frustrating to hear all the rumors about me. It wasn’t until this morning that I finally got my final answer and thankfully I’m healthy and ready to return to football.”

The man was forced to address rumors about him having cancer and AIDS? Why? Because people wouldn’t respect his privacy. As I pointed out yesterday, some media outlets were impatient as they said they were “promised” a statement on Tuesday when they clearly were not.

This was a man’s private life. This wasn’t a football injury or speculation about which team he might sign with or be traded to. This was an unkown illness that could have had a profound affect on his and his family’s lives. Privacy is expected and deserved.

Yet, I had to log on to Facebook one night to find someone who “knows” people say “sources” say Maclin has “bone cancer.” Say what? That’s really nobody’s freakin’ business until Maclin decides it is. If you disagree, you’re a nitwit.

To be fair, no mainstream media outlet — or even blog from what I can tell — “reported that.” But, I guess Facebook, Twitter and social media is OK to put someone’s personal business out there.

The rumor mill has a time and place. People's private, personal issues aren't it, however.

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That’s not to say some bloggers aren’t at fault in instances such as this. There were the reports last summer of Jayson Werth being friendly with Mrs. Chase Utley. Baseless rumors that delve into people’s personal lives.

Then, you also had the whole Jeff Carter/teammate wife affair thing, too.

Stories such as this cross boundaries. It’s OK to read and write blogs and social media posts analyzing a game or a team’s situation. Speculating whether the Phillies will or should acquire Hunter Pence is fun and passes the time. Even if a player is injured on the field, it’s relevant to speculate how much time will be missed.

But, when it comes to things that are private, serious, personal matters, even a public figure has a right to expect privacy. That’s something we all need to be more careful of in the future. Unless, of course, you like being asked 256 times a day what the problem is when you have no answers or know the “rumor” is a blatant lie.

Welcome to Jeremy Maclin’s world. The Eagles receiver has battled mononucleosis this spring, losing 15 pounds in the process. He is currently still ill and has undergone a crazy amount of testing to determine what he is battling.

Yet, the media and public expect answers.

Hey, it’s not wrong to be curious and want to know. Maclin wants to know. And, that’s kind of the point here: How can you hound a guy and accuse the Eagles of CIA-level secrecy when the player himself doesn’t have answers. When doctors don’t have answers.

Due to an undetermined illness, this is as close as Jeremy Maclin has gotten to the huddle this spring. Football aside, you have to hope this young man's health returns to normal soon.

Now, everybody and their cousin is — dare we say — bitching about the fact that Tuesday came and went without any word on Maclin’s illness. They say that the public was promised answers.

From Dan Graziano’s Breakfast Links on ESPN.com:

We were promised Jeremy Maclin news Tuesday and didn’t get it. As of this morning, neither Maclin nor the Philadelphia Eagles have issued any kind of statement on the mysterious medical condition that has kept the star wide receiver from practicing in training camp.

Never did Jeremy Maclin’s brother promise a statement. He simply said that the family would find something out and then develop a plan of action to determine what to do and when to comment. That’s it.

In fact, his brother, Andre, said:

“That’s when we find out exactly what’s going on and when (the Maclin camp) will address it and talk.”

Notice he says when they will address it, not that they would address it on Tuesday.

So, be patient and wait your turn. This goes deeper than football, as Graziano also pointed out:

And while his status as a football player obviously isn’t as important as his personal health, we don’t know anything about the latter except that it’s not good enough to allow him to play.

The bottom line is to put yourself in Jeremy’s shoes. If you were ill for months and couldn’t find out the cause, would you be rushing to the podium or issuing a release the second you found out what it was?

McCoy and Brown have RB, the most competitive position of competition on the Eagles this year! It may b a controversy by midseason!

We can’t see how Brown will turn this into a controversy. McCoy is coming off of a 1,080 yard, seven TD season in which he averaged 5.2 yards per carry. He’s entering his third season and is just 23 years old. Shady is starting to enter his prime.

Could Ronnie Brown cause a RB controversy in Philly?

Brown, meanwhile, will turn 30 in December and had 734 yards rushing and five scores in just seven fewer carries than McCoy last year. He also has just one career 1,000-yard season (1,008 in 2006) and has missed nearly half of the season due to injuries in two of the last four years.

The guy who spurned four other teams who offered more money to sign in Philly is best as a back who shares the ball. Shady would benefit from sharing the ball as well, as it would keep him fresher and extend his career.

But, a controversy? We don’t see it. We see a 65-35 split in Shady’s favor. Plus, Shady will get his chances in the flat.

As for Brooks, a guy with a Super Bowl ring, he sees this as another step in the Eagles finally fulfilling that one glittering goal. As he responded to us on Twitter:

in order for Eagles to Win a SB, offensively they have to become more balanced! Andy knows, hence acquiring Brown!

let’s hope Coach Mudd has a lil say so in the gameplan! Zone right would help Vick with the deep ball play action!

Your fingertips to Andy’s eyes, Barrett.

Yesterday, we relayed the words LeSean McCoy had in reference to his “kissing and making up” with new receiver Steve Smith. Shady basically said he, “doesn’t know what Steve looks like.”

Steve Smith has tried to make amends with LeSean McCoy.

Today, we get even more words from Steve Smith on his stab at making up with Shady. From our competitors at PhillySportsDaily.com:

“That’s going to take a little time. He wasn’t the happiest,” said Smith after Monday’s practice. “He said he meant what he said, so it’s all good.”

If your starting feature back and a guy who will see a lot of time on the field at receiver if healthy aren’t seeing eye-to-eye, the word “awkward” comes to mind. At least the QB is on speaking terms with both of them.

Could Smith-McCoy turn into this?

Let’s hope not. McCoy needs to learn to forgive and forget. Getting upset over a Twitter feud that you started is not the most mature way to handle this. Of course, maybe McCoy has already moved on. Moments ago, he tweeted:

This whole team like my 2nd family …..

We assume that does include the WHOLE TEAM.

Who would you rather trade for?

Quarterback A is a six-time Pro Bowler who led his team to five conference championship games and one Super Bowl while throwing for 32,000 yards, 213 TDs and just 96 picks.

Quarterback B has thrown for 2,082 yards, 11 TDs and 14 picks, and attempted just 319 passes in four NFL seasons. He has whopping seven starts under his belt. Granted, he threw for more than 300 yards in three of those starts. Still, his body of work is less?

Who do you want? Who brings more in a trade?

Conventional wisdom says it’s quarterback A. Only, this is the NFL where youth means more than production.

Quarterback Kevin Kolb is likely to bring more value in a trade than Donovan McNabb did a year ago.

For the Eagles, quarterback B, Kevin Kolb, is likely to bring more in a trade than McNabb did just a year ago when he was still considered a Pro Bowl talent around the league.

The Eagles jumped at the 37th pick in last year’s draft and what turned out to be the 103rd pick in this year’s draft. That equates to 618 value points according to the NFL Draft Pick Value Chart used by league GMs. The 37th pick is worth 530 points, while the 103rd pick is worth 88 points.

Rumors have teams willing to part with a first for Kolb. The last pick in the first round is worth 590 points. However, teams drafting toward the bottom of the first round generally aren’t shopping for starting quarterbacks. The lone exception is Seattle which has yet to extend their aging signal caller Matt Hasselbeck. The Seahags own the 25th pick, which is worth 720 points. Right there, Kolb has brought more in value than McNabb did.

Even if the Seahawks don’t chase Kolb and instead settle for trying the Matt Leinart reclamation project (and, after Mike Williams resurrection under Pete Carrol last year we wouldn’t rule any USC stiffs out), the fact is there is a precedent for a Kolb deal.

Donovan McNabb ended up bringing 618 value points to Philly according to the NFL Draft Value Chart used by league GMs.

ESPN.com’s Mike Sando did a great job comparing Kolb right now to Hasselbeck when Green Bay dealt him to Seattle. Hasselbeck’s value was 580 points. Kolb is likely worth a tad more than that since he does have NFL experience. Hasselbeck was stuck behind Brett Favre and never had a start.

So, the Eagles are looking at trade value right around the last pick in the first round. Again, a team needing a QB will be drafting higher. That’s not to say that the Eagles would get a top 15 or 20 pick straight up for Kolb. The 20th pick is worth 850 points. The Eagles will likely need to deal Kolb and a late second or early third to get a pick that high. Or, they’ll need to swap first round picks and get a later pick back in exchange.

Still, the bottom line is Kolb will bring back more value than McNabb did when he was still a Pro Bowl talent. To me, that’s amazing. But, it also lets you know that NFL GMs place a higher value on youth than proven production.

You can just hear sports talk radio, columnists and fans getting back into their Kevin Kolb frenzy already. Two consecutive wins and a 326-yard, three TD performance against the Falcons will do that. Nobody should be on the Kevin Kolb is The Savior Bandwagon yet, however.

Sure, Kolb came out on Sunday and made a statement that he needs to be back in the starting mix. If he could lose his gig due to injury, why can’t he take it back. Andy Reid will likely say Michael Vick is still the starter when he is healthy. What else is he going to say? He has to leave a backdoor in case Kolb sucks next week or gets hurt again. Why mess with Vick’s psyche when you don’t need to.

The bottom line is that Kolb needs to be the starter for this team. That’s no strike at Vick, nor should it be a feather in Kolb’s cap.

Kevin Kolb is going to play great at times and poorly at times this year. The Eagles need to ride the roller coaster and let him start.

Kolb needs to start because he’s still learning and this was the plan when the Eagles dealt McNabb to Washington on Easter Sunday. The Birdbrain trust thought Kolb could be a franchise quarterback who could win the elusive Super Bowl. Who knows? That may just come true. But, don’t dare judge that by today.

The fourth-year pro out of Houston is going to have piss-poor games like he did against Green Bay. He’s going to have stud games like he did against Atlanta. And, he’s going to have mediocre games like he did in San Francisco.

The bottom line is that the only way to fix his mistakes and inconsistencies is to play, and play every week. The Eagles dealt McNabb to see what they had in Kolb. For that reason alone, he is the man who must start the rest of the season. Reid did the right thing by getting Kolb out of the fire, especially in the hype leading up the the Redskins game.

We’re now past that.

If you go back to Vick, at the end of the year you are in the same exact spot you were on Easter 2010. You still wouldn’t know whether Kolb is a franchise-type NFL quarterback. The only way to find out is to play him and go through the ups and downs of a developing signal caller.

Don’t get too excited about Kolb and expect 300 yards a week. But, he needs to be the Eagles starter from this point on.

Ashley Fox has a great, in-depth look at Andy Reid today that focuses more on the off-field issues involving his sons that he’s had to deal with the last three years. Tucked into the piece is a bit of football talk in the form of the quarterback situation, and drafting players that can thrive playing in front of a demanding, passionate, intelligent fan base.

Donovan McNabb sulks after being replaced by Kevin Kolb in Baltimore in 2008. Andy reid says he drafted McNabb because the Syracuse grad was "wired for Philadelphia." In the end, does Reid believe that?

He’s quoted in the piece as saying, “(McNabb) had the ability to laugh things off that needed to be laughed off and not take things too serious from the outside influences. At the same time, he was able to focus on the job at hand. You have to be able to do that here.”

He thinks Kolb has the mentality to survive the disappointing Sundays surely to come this year when he goes throw the ups and downs all first-year starters face.

He said, “They probably get to it a different way, but [Kolb] has that ability to not let the outside things influence his game inside. I think that’s important.“

Having read both quotes, you have to question if McNabb ended up having the mentality Reid envisioned when he tied his credibility to the quarterback’s arm in the 1999 draft. While we’re one of McNabb’s supporters and were against the trade, clearly McNabb had trouble accepting blame and dealing with the perception people had of him during his time in Eagles green.

He was upset when the Eagles drafted Kolb. Reports indicated he and Reid barely talked that offseason. While one can understand being upset at a player drafted to eventually succeed you, a professional should embrace the challenge and step up a bit more.

Also, look at last year when the Eagles got pounded by Dallas. McNabb referred to the young guys and implied it was their fault as much as his. A veteran who is “wired for Philadelphia” doesn’t deflect any attention or blame to young guys just learning the pro game. DeSean Jackson was in just his second year, and Jeremy Maclin was a rookie. Let them be.

So, was McNabb “Philly wired?” Clearly not. And, Reid implies just as much in his quotes above. He says Kolb “goes at it in (a) different way.” Then Reid uses the key word — “but.” he continues to say that outside issues don’t affect Kolb. Is he implying that McNabb couldn’t block out the media and fans perception of him? Was McNabb another Mike Schmidt — highly successful but just never felt comfortable in this city?

Let’s face it, the national media has done Philly sports fans no favors in helping to form our reputation and create our image. While nobody will dispute that we expect the best from anyone who dares accept the challenge of donning one of our teams’ jerseys, we’re also very fair.

Some athletes can handle it and seem to thrive in Philly. Allen Iverson, Charles Barkley and Jimmy Rollins come to mind. Others can’t fathom playing in the City of Brotherly Love (see Rolen, Scott).

In his two seasons here, DeSean Jackson has enjoyed a love affair with the 65,000 who pack Lincoln Financial Field and the hundreds of thousands who watch from the local watering hole or their living rooms. Of course, making the Pro Bowl will get you in the fans’ good graces. Hard work, however, is something everyone has to notice.

DeSean Jackson has enjoyed a love affair with Eagles fans. His work ethic is one reason why we support him. His background also allows him to understand us.

Jackson isn’t the biggest guy on the field. In fact, at 5-10 and 175 pounds, Jackson is the NFL’s version of Allen Iverson. He’s not scared to go across the middle with the big boys and take his hits. He’ll do what’s needed to win football games.

When he arrived in Philly after being drafted, he knew of Philly’s reputation.

“I had always heard Philly was a hard-nosed, blue collar town,” Jackson told DailyPhiladelphian.com this week. “I’ve never had a negative experience. I hear what they say to some of the guys on other teams and I’m glad I’m on their side.”

Plays like this will keep DeSean and Philly fans in a healthy, long-term relationship.

Jackson learned early on how Philly was a football town.

“When I first got drafted to be an Eagle, I knew of the fans’ reputation,” he said. “When I first got off the plane at the airport, the cameras were there filming me and the fans were all excited. I knew they were passionate and behind the Eagles.”

As far as whether or not the passion can go too far sometimes, Jackson doesn’t see it like that.

“I like their passion,” the Pro Bowler said. “They do not accept not winning and that’s what I was taught to believe in life.”

Jackson said failure is not an option and he always works hard to get better and be successful. The bottom line is that he gets us, understands us and accepts us. If only every athlete could do the same.

DeSean seems like he wants to connect with fans. Following him on social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter is one way to do that. You can also check out his website, deseanjackson10.com.

Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg gave Philly an All-Pro running back in the mid 1990s. If everything goes according to plan, Eagle Nation may have to send donations to the high school’s football program for producing two top tailbacks.

LeSean “Shady” McCoy, forced into significant role due to concussions suffered by Brian Westbrook, exceeded expectations in his rookie year by rushing for a team rookie record 637 yards, and he found paydirt four times. He also caught 40 balls for more than 300 yards.

McCoy hails from the same high school as another name familiar to Eagles fans — Ricky Watters.

LeSean McCoy hails from the same high school as another former Eagles back — Ricky Watters.

Watters, who is helping kids via his Urban Youth League these days, takes pride in seeing another player from his alma mater manning the Eagles backfield.

“I heard about him before I even saw him play because he was coming from the same footsteps as me,” Watters said. “It’s cool to hear about and see a guy like me (in the NFL). It makes the alma mater look very good.”

Upon seeing him play in person and from afar, Watters continues to be impressed with the hard-nosed running style McCoy displays.

“The first time I saw him, he was slick,” the five-time Pro Bowler said. “Every time I watch him, he impresses me even more. Last year with much different competition and in a tough situation that he had to deal with, he did a great job.”

More important than the player on the field is the person in the community.

“I saw him at home at Super Bowl,” Watters said, “and he is a very cordial young man.”

Watters says he has talked to McCoy but wants to do more to help the second year back become an even better player.

“I’d love to help him even more because when I was young, if I had a guy to give me tips and cut up some of film with (I’d have been even better),” Watters said. “I’d like to do that for him.”

Like him or not, Watters could be a veteran presence, a sounding board, for McCoy. Maybe Andy Reid should extend the olive branch and bring Watters in for a couple days during training camp.