For Chad Hall, there could be no turning back - and that's exactly the way he wants it. Hall, the diminutive wide receiver who was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster Wednesday, is expected to contribute both on offense and special teams this week with Jeremy Maclin on the mend with shoulder and hamstring injuries. Last season, Hall totaled 144 yards from scrimmage in eight games. The key figure in those totals is the games played - in order to retain practice squad eligibility, a player can be active for no more than eight games in any one season.

So even though Hall found himself on the outside of the Eagles' roster looking in after the preseason, he was still eligible to be on the team's practice squad, where he's been working on his craft and biding his time. Hall was no stranger to the practice squad, where he spent the first four weeks of last season, but he admitted that, at first, this year was more difficult because he'd already gotten a taste of the action.

"I knew how it worked last year, so this year was a little different after playing last year," said Hall after learning of his promotion. "It was a little tougher being back on the practice squad, but I've gotten better every week, helping this team every way I can on scout team and now I get a chance to help them on Sunday ...  You can either look down about it and be bitter, or I took it every day to get better and every day could be the time when they call me up."

Hall acknowledged that he'll be in the mix to return kickoffs and punts Sunday night against the New York Giants. He returned four kickoffs for a 16.3-yard average in 2010 and returned three punts for a total of 31 yards, with a 14-yard long. But Hall, a former running back at Air Force where he earned All-Mountain West honors, believes that his biggest improvement over the last year has been at wide receiver.

"Last year, coming in, it really was my first time actually playing receiver," he said. "So getting off the line, running routes, I was getting better every day. This year, I don't think about it, I play and I just have a lot more confidence out there."

Now, Hall could theoretically still retain his practice squad eligibility if he isn't on the Eagles' roster for six or more games, thereby failing to accrue another NFL season (though, by rules, he must be on the Eagles' active roster for at least three weeks once promoted). But the likelihood is that this will be Hall's chance to stick on an NFL roster, an opportunity he's been waiting for a long time.

"It is difficult," said Hall of spending the first 10 weeks of the season on the practice squad. "You want to be out on that field, that's why we play this game, to compete and to make plays. This is such a great organization, such a great team, you want to help them any way you can on Sundays, in front of everybody.

"I'm just happy to be able to help this team again and I'm looking forward to doing it however way I can."