Thursday Night Football Pre-Game Recon: Bleeding Green Nation Edition (Part III)

Jason's answers to our first two questions can be read here and here. Question No. 3 deals with Asante Samuel and his availability for tonight's game.

3. Do you expect Asante Samuel to play on Thursday night? If not, what will his absence mean to the Philly secondary and the defensive scheme in general?

BGN: I really don't know at this point. He's questionable after having been limited in practice all week. He didn't practice at all last week, so I suppose that he's at least been part of the walkthroughs is a good sign. The Eagles, like pretty much all teams now, are so secretive that anything I'd say would be total speculation. The only thing I know for a fact is that he's been a part of all the walkthroughs, so they're preparing him to play. It's probably all going to come down to how the knee feels on gameday.

His absence was a huge deal to the secondary last week. He's been having easily his best year as an Eagle, if not in his career. Not only was he leading the league in picks, he was shutting down receivers. QBs have a rating of 29 when they target Samuel. That's the best of any corner in the league. So, his presence or lack thereof on Thursday night will be huge.

I see. No need to rush back, Asante. Get healthy. Don't be a hero. There will be other games. Think of the playoffs, man. Think of your career!