John Geliebter – USA TODAY Sports
Wednesday is a day Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Curtis Marsh likely hopes his coaches quickly forget.
The former third-round NFL draft pick was lit up repeatedly by Tom Brady during the Eagles joint practice with the New England Patriots on Wednesday at the Novacare Complex.
Brady repeatedly targeted Marsh during full squad drills during a precision like dismantling of the Birds’ secondary. Danny Amendola burnt Marsh and later so did Kenbrell Thompkins for multiple touchdowns.
It got to the point that the entire Patriots sideline went into full fledged taunt mode every time Marsh was targeted by the 36-year-old quarterback, who arguably will go down as the best to ever play the position.
Despite his much-to-be-desired performance, Marsh acknowledged after practice that there is plenty to be learned from Wednesday’s workout.
“I think we did some good things out there and we have some things that we can improve on,” Marsh pointed out. “We’re going to continue to get into the film room and try to get better every day.”
The Eagles have juggled their secondary pairings throughout camp, at times sending out the second-team pairing of Kurt Coleman and Nate Allen with the first-team front seven and others with the top duo of Patrick Chung and Kenny Phillips with the second-group front seven.
Despite his struggles on Wednesday, Marsh knows that these past two days have been a barometer of sorts for he and his defensive teammates.
“They are one of the best offenses in the league,” Marsh said. “It’s setting the bar high. I think it’s great and tremendous, I’m thankful for those guys coming out here and taking the time to practice with us.”
On the injury front, cornerback Cary Williams has made it through just three full practices and left in the early stages of today’s workout after aggravating his hamstring. Despite his limited workload, Chip Kelly isn’t concerned with his top cornerback missing time.
“Cary’s doing the best he can,” Kelly said after Wednesday’s practice. “He’s just had a nagging injury since he got here and that is very frustrating for him and for everyone. You definitely want him out here and he wants to be out here, but there’s nothing you can do.”
In Williams’ absence, Marsh and second-year corner Brandon Boykin took reps on the outside with the first-team defense.
While it’s only one practice, what Brady put on film for Marsh, the Eagles secondary and coaching staff is that this defense has a long way to go before it can challenge some of the elite offenses in this league.
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