Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Babin's wife, Sara, might be happier than her husband is to be back on the field.
Sidelined since July 28 with a calf sprain, Babin missed the entire preseason. On Sunday evening, Babin's wife Tweeted that Babin was healed and would practice on Monday. Babin proved his wife correct and declared afterwards that he will play in the season opener against Cleveland on Sunday.
"I live my life every day as a professional. I wake up before the sun. I eat right. I sleep right. I keep my body right. I've been in this defense for two years now," said Babin, who had 18 sacks in 2011. "Was I a little rusty today? You can split hairs and say maybe, maybe it wasn't. I felt good. It was crisp and it was a good place to start."
Babin explained that his wife was relieved to not have him so irritable and cranky around the house because he couldn't play. Without Babin, the Eagles' defensive line fared pretty well in the preseason. The Eagles led the league with 20 sacks. Phillip Hunt and Brandon Graham, who received more playing time due to Babin's absence, led the team and were tied for fourth in the league with 3.5 sacks. Watching his teammates play this preseason gave Babin "goose bumps."
"I don't even think it's going to be fair at some point because we've watched tape from last year at the end of the season and we've watched practice tape, preseason tape of the same guys," said Babin, who has 30.5 sacks in the past two seasons. "People are going to be excited when we go out there and it counts."
The Browns will start a rookie quarterback in Brandon Weeden on Sunday. Babin proclaims that he doesn't take the quarterback's lack of experience into consideration when preparing.
"Listen, I just go by the numbers. I watch the play without sound. I evaluate each player. I never take that data into consideration. I look forward to getting after all quarterbacks - rookies or 10-year," Babin said.
Unlike Babin's wife, Weeden is not going to be thrilled about the defensive end's return to action.
Make sure to follow us on Twitter @EaglesInsider
