Defensive coordinator Billy Davis said that his game plan for the Panthers was “pretty much the same” one that he put together for the Patriots the week before. Same techniques, same principles, same basic calls. It was just the results that were different.

A unit that surrendered 248 rushing yards (8.0 average) to the Patriots in the preseason opener limited Carolina to just 74 rushing yards on 25 attempts (3.0 average) Thursday night. The first unit yielded just a pair of field goals in the Eagles’ 14-9 win.

“It was so new, the scheme was so new,” said Davis of the first preseason game. “Everybody wanted to do well so bad. I think we pressed a little bit. Tonight felt a lot more relaxed, guys just taking care of their job more than anything.”

Chip Kelly and the Eagles introduced a four tight end package Thursday night against the Panthers. We take a look at why it was successful for them.

Several of the Eagles’ offensive players had seen or heard about Chip Kelly before he became their head coach.

They adjusted to the new scheme, the new practice methods and the new environment in the spring and then the summer. They knew Kelly had great success at Oregon, but they didn’t know exactly how his philosophies would translate to the NFL.

There are tweaks and and adjustments and wrinkles, but many of the basic concepts – tempo, options, taking advantage of the numbers – are the same. And through two preseason games, the players are buying in.

“I haven’t been this excited about football in a long time,” said center Jason Kelce. “The whole way the offense is structured and the scheming and all the stuff we are doing, it’s really exciting to see where we are going to go.”

The first question to Chip Kelly following Thursday’s preseason win over the Panthers:

Chip, after tonight, how do you tell Michael Vick he isn’t your starting quarterback?

“That’s a good question,” Kelly responded. “I thought Mike put another good game together. But we’re going to evaluate everything. I thought besides the throwaway that Nick [Foles] couldn’t get out of the end zone he did a nice job, too. I think we have two quarterbacks that can play in an NFL game.”

But only one can start. And after two preseason games, Vick has made the better case for why he should be the guy.

Michael Vick and Nick Foles have gone head-to-head in two preseason games now. A leader has emerged in the quarterback competition.

Here are instant observations from tonight’s Eagles-Panthers game.

Discuss tonight’s Eagles-Panthers game in our live game thread. Kickoff is set for 7:30.

Reserve outside linebacker Phillip Hunt underwent surgery to repair a partial tear of his left ACL, the team announced Thursday.

Hunt is the fourth Eagles player to suffer a torn ACL this preseason, joining Jeremy Maclin, Arrelious Benn and fellow linebacker Jason Phillips. The first three players sustained the injury on the NovaCare practice fields. It is believed that Hunt was hurt at Lincoln Financial Field Friday against the Patriots.

Here’s a roundup of what the national media are saying about the Eagles this week.

Will Billy Davis’ system cater to Fletcher Cox’s strengths? Will Vick and Foles both be on the roster? How is the D-line battle going? We try to answer these questions in the latest Twitter Mailbag.

Here are 10 things we’re tracking tonight when the Eagles host the Panthers in their second preseason game.

Let’s face it, there are a ton of guys on this roster that will be fighting for something on Thursday night. New coach, new schemes, no favorites. Depth chart written in sand, etc. That’s part of what makes this Eagles preseason so interesting.

Some have more riding on tonight’s tilt against the Panthers than others. Here are the five with the most to gain/lose, in one man’s humble opinion:

Marcus Vick does not sound like you might expect him to.

His  public image is in such bad shape, you’re almost anticipating this snarly voice to snap at you when answer the phone; some one-dimensional character that fits with our understanding of the man, which has been cobbled together from newspaper clippings and Wikipedia entries and of course, Twitter outbursts.

What we found in our recent hour-long conversation with Marcus was something completely different. He was measured and he was thoughtful and he was reflective. He didn’t give any impression that he lacked a moral compass — only the ability to stay consistently true to it.

Now 29 years old, Marcus has been sitting shotgun for the entirety of his brother’s  journey. Whether it be a limousine or a jail cell, he has been by Mike’s side. That makes his perspective a unique and important one. From the humble beginnings to his brother’s meteoric rise; from the devastating fall to the climb towards maturity and respectability, this is how it has all looked through the eyes of Marcus Vick.

It’s time for McManus vs. Kapadia, Round 2.

Yes, T-Mac got the best of me last year in our 53-man roster projection contest. But I’m back to avenge that loss in 2013.

Teams must trim their rosters down to 53 by 6 p.m. on Aug. 31. Between now and then, Tim and I will release our projections. I’ll take this week, he’ll take next week, and so on.

On Aug. 30, we’ll release our final versions, matching our projections up vs. the Eagles’. The loser will have to buy the winner a year’s supply of smoothies… or sconces… or something like that.

Anyway, I’m up first. Here’s what I came up with.

Jason Kelce has not spent much time away from the NovaCare Complex this offseason. The Eagles’ center estimated that the longest stretch he’s gone without stepping foot in the practice facility has been one week.

“I’ve always been a guy that’s around here a lot,” Kelce said earlier this summer. “Part of that is I think we just have great facilities, and I try to make sure that I’m in shape year-round, trying to improve my physical abilities. And obviously for this year, it was really important just to try to hone in on the quad strength in particular to get back to where it was before the injury.”

Kelce is coming off a torn ACL which he sustained in Week 2 of the 2012 season. The third-year player watched from afar as his teammates labored through a disastrous 4-12 campaign.

Now playing for a new coach, Kelce has earned praise from Chip Kelly all offseason for the work he’s put in at the team’s facility. And Kelly knows the O-Line will play a major role in determining how quickly his offense can get on track.