National Football League

Skelton limited in practice with Cardinals

Published Sep. 21, 2012 4:17 a.m. ET

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Quarterback John Skelton returned to the Cardinals in a limited role Thursday, the first time he's been on the practice field since spraining his right ankle against Seattle in Arizona's opener.

He'll have to do a lot more to have a shot at starting against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt would like to see if Skelton improves before making a decision whether he or Kevin Kolb will start against Michael Vick and the Eagles.

''We have to see if he's able to handle a practice before we can make any kind of decision like that,'' Whisenhunt said. ''This is the first step in it and we'll see how it progresses.''

Skelton beat out Kevin Kolb as Arizona's starter in a tight preseason race, but sprained his ankle in the fourth quarter against the Seahawks.

Entering the game to a chorus of boos from the home crowd, Kolb marched the Cardinals down the field quickly, hitting 6 of 7 passes, including a 6-yarder to Andre Roberts for the winning score with just under 5 minutes left.

With Arizona a two-touchdown underdog at New England last week, Kolb was unspectacular but steady, giving the Cardinals a chance to ride their special teams and stout defense to the upset.

Despite the 2-0 record and Skelton's shaky status, Whisenhunt wouldn't say for sure that Kolb would start against Philadelphia.

Skelton added some intrigue to Arizona's quarterback situation by practicing, but has some work to do before getting the nod against the Eagles, Kolb's former team.

''He did some stuff at practice today,'' Whisenhunt said. ''It was good to see him working.''

Cardinals tight end Todd Heap also returned to practice Thursday after spraining his left knee against the Patriots.

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