Dear Diary appears on every Tuesday of the regular season here using a rotation of players. Today: wide receiver Jeremy Maclin.
"I'm excited about getting this season started. It's Tuesday and we're in the middle of the week preparing to play Jacksonville, and it's different for me. This is the first time I'm preparing for a regular season game with Chip Kelly as my head coach and it's something unique. I like it. We never practiced on Tuesdays when Andy Reid was the head coach, so this takes a bit of getting used to in a way.
"I actually like it. My legs feel really good and I feel like I'm going to be in the best condition possible for Sunday. Everything is kind of new, but at the same time I've had a taste of it and the tempo is right for me and the offense is right for me. All systems are "go" for me.
"We've been together as a 53-man roster and a practice squad for the last couple of days and I really think we have something special going on here. My hat is off to every man who has been here. They all worked hard and some landed on other teams' rosters, and that's great. I'm rooting for all of them to last a long time in the league.
"One thing you notice when the numbers are reduced is that the practice reps increase. Practice doesn't change. The lines are much shorter. We are being pushed in practice. I haven't been on any other team, but I can't imagine many other teams having the kind of chemistry and camaraderie that we have. I think it's a credit to the kind of people the organization brings in here. The direction of the team is going up, no doubt about it.
"Jacksonville is going to be a tough team on Sunday. They've improved a lot and they have a really, really good front seven. It's going to be a tough task, but if we play the way I know we can play, we can beat any team.
"I'm not daydreaming about what it's going to be like on Sunday for me. I imagine that I will have a lot of emotions, having missed all of last season. I know I'm going to be in a great mood. I am very thankful to be ready to go for the 2014 season and I'm going to play that way.
"Preseason went well for me so I'm ready physically and mentally. I didn't play against New England, but I feel like the two games I was in there I was able to get my feet wet, catch a few balls and also put my knee in awkward positions in both games. That actually helped me. I'm over the hump and ready to play my best football starting on Sunday."
Follow Jeremy Maclin on Twitter at _@jmac18_
