Offseason

Linebacker Jamar Chaney said he would be ready to practice in April even after having offseason surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck, according to the Eagles' website. He said the surgery would help him from suffering the same injury again. "It's coming along pretty good now," Chaney told PhiladelphiaEagles.com "By the end of this month, maybe next month, I should be back to myself 100 percent. I feel pretty good now, working out, squatting, bench pressing, doing the normal stuff I would be doing in the offseason.

Dennis Martinez will not pitch again this season because his injured elbow is not getting better. The Cleveland Indians righthander lasted only a few pitches in his last workout Thursday and had to stop when the elbow acted up. He told manager Mike Hargrove yesterday he is done for the year. "I thank the fans for everything that's happened since I've been here," Martinez said. "It didn't end up the way I wanted it. " But Martinez, 41, is on the disabled list for the third time this season after pitching since 1986 without being disabled.

On a day the Eagles finally welcomed one All-Pro lineman back into the fold, another missing Pro Bowler moved a huge step closer to playing this Saturday. For the first time since undergoing offseason surgery on both knees, guard Ron Solt participated in yesterday's crunching, nine-on-seven run drills at training camp. His appearance in the drills made it very possible that he will see action in Saturday night's exhibition against Pittsburgh at Veterans Stadium. "He went live one-on-one over there," said Eagles coach Buddy Ryan, who had emphasized that Solt wouldn't play until able to go through the nine-on- seven day after day. "He looked good to me. I'll have to see how he feels tomorrow.

Although most of the Phillies' starting positions are already set with the exception of rightfield, there are still several things that fans can look out for as Grapefruit League games begin this weekend in Clearwater, Fla. "I would try to get the spring-training roster right away," said Tom McCarthy, who returns as the Phillies' play-by-play television announcer. "There are going to be a lot of numbers and players that you may not know. " There will certainly be some new faces around Bright House Field, and with the departure of free-agent rightfielder Jayson Werth, there will be a heated position battle among outfielders Ben Francisco, John Mayberry Jr. and Domonic Brown.

Maybe there's something in the water. How else can you explain the coincidence? Eagles wide receiver Cris Carter, expected to challenge strongly for a starting job this summer, broke the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot during a pickup basketball game in Ohio last week. The fifth metatarsal is the same bone that running back Keith Byars - Carter's teammate at Ohio State and with the Eagles - has broken twice. Two years ago, Eagles fans never even heard of the fifth metatarsal.

THIS TIME, when the draft was over, Howie Roseman felt energized. Not that Roseman had felt like jumping off a bridge following the 2010 and 2011 Eagles drafts, Roseman's first as general manager, but when this selection meet concluded, Roseman thought he and the Eagles had learned from their mistakes, had seen some gambles pay off, and had done everything they could do to make the 2012 offseason and the draft a success. Late Saturday evening, after the Eagles completed their nine selections in the seven-round draft and laid the groundwork for signing their 13 undrafted free agents, Roseman drove home.

THE OFFSEASON NFL players lost to the lockout last year has been blamed for just about every unfortunate thing that's happened, this side of the "Twilight" movies. Eagles quarterbacks coach Doug Pederson threw another log on the fire Monday, when he opined that the falloff in QB Michael Vick's play last season had a lot to do with Vick not being able to review mistakes with coaches and fine-tune this time a year ago. "Honestly, I think it was the offseason," Pederson said during a rare NovaCare media session with Eagles offensive position coaches, minus offensive line coach Howard Mudd, who isn't in town.

The Eagles seem content to give youth a chance at safety, at least for now. "We're excited about our group of safeties," Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said Monday. "I don't think we need someone with more experience. We feel very comfortable with our group. " Roseman similarly said he feels good about the team's young running backs behind starter LeSean McCoy. His comments came during a wide-ranging meeting with reporters that also touched on his thoughts on drafting quarterback Nick Foles, defensive end Brandon Graham's progress and a few nervous moments during the draft.

This is a post by Les Bowen on the Daily News' Eagletarian blog. AT THE MAXWELL Club festivities Friday in Atlantic City, I got in a quick word with Eagles guard Evan Mathis. I asked Mathis what he knows about the blocking system he'll be working in under new offensive-line coach Jeff Stoutland. Mathis said that he knows virtually nothing about it, that he and Stoutland are prohibited from any but the most general discussions right now, at this point in the offseason. It wasn't the first time I'd gotten that response.

With the draft and initial burst of free agency behind us, we have a pretty good idea of who the Eagles will be bringing into training camp to fight for spots on the regular-season roster. Here, then, is a look at the top position battles to look forward to as rookie minicamps and offseason practices arrive in May and June and lead up to training camp in July.   Linebacker Another summer, another new spin on the position that the Eagles can never quite seem to settle.