Of all the positions Philadelphia Eagles fans should be worried about, wide receiver should come far down the list.

That doesn’t mean that Jeremy Maclin’s mysterious illness shouldn’t be a concern. Maclin is back in his home state of Missouri undergoing more tests to discern what precisely is wrong with him. Eagles head coach Andy Reid had no update on Maclin after Saturday morning’s practice session at training camp at Lehigh University and said he didn’t know when Maclin would rejoin the team.

After the preseason opener Thursday, Reid continued to insist the third-year pro who caught 70 passes for 964 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2010 will start the season with the Eagles (which they open in St. Louis, Maclin’s hometown).

“I think he’ll be fine,” Reid said. “I think he’s going to be ready. I guess I’m optimistic. I’m waiting to hear the results, but I’m optimistic.”

Judging from talk shows and message boards, not too many seem to agree with Reid. There’s no reason not to think Reid is right — as he said, no one seems to know what is wrong with Maclin and nothing has surfaced to the contrary — but the Eagles only have themselves to blame for the skepticism and doubt about Maclin. Far too often the Birds have obfuscated about injuries, calling them minor, playing them down or simply stonewalling until, lo and behold, the “minor” injury adds up to missing six weeks.

That may or may not be the case with Maclin — though Reid deserves the benefit of the doubt here; “I just want to make sure he is feeling right and okay,” Reid said — but it also doesn’t matter.

The Maclin situation represents, as higher-mathematics types would call it, a binary solution set.

Either: a) he plays Sept. 11, or b) he doesn’t.

If A, all will be fine. Reid won’t let him on the field if he’s not 100 percent, so a Maclin appearance in the Edward Jones Dome means he’ll be all set.

For those professional worry-wort types who obsess over every possible weakness of their team — these are the people who fret about the Phillies’ 12th pitcher while the team marches through the National League like Sherman through Georgia — and dither that Maclin will suffer from missing training camp or being “rusty”, consider these three items:

One, Reid isn’t worried about it.

“I know he can play football. That part I know,” Reid said.

Two, neither are his teammates. As fellow wideout Jason Avant said, Maclin could step on the field tomorrow and be (mentally) ready to play. He knows the system, he knows the offense.

Three, the “rusty” DeSean Jackson made his 2011 Lehigh debut Saturday morning after ending his holdout and looked … in top midseason form. Or better. Caught everything thrown his way and played perfectly in sync with Michael Vick. There was not the slightest sign Jackson had missed two weeks of camp.

“It was a lot of fun to be back,” said Jackson, who delighted the large crowd on hand for the last Saturday of camp with some nifty grabs. “My teammates were happy to have me back. My legs are feeling great. I want to put it all together on the field and keep working hard. I want to be consistent every day.”

Jackson’s well on his way to that latter goal — every pattern looked October-sharp Saturday.

And that’s what will be the case with Maclin if he plays. He’ll come back, look just fine and step right into the lineup.

If B — Maclin doesn’t play Sept. 11 — there won’t be a whole lot of reasons to worry, either.

Sure, the Eagles would miss Maclin’s explosiveness. But anybody who watched Riley Cooper turn the Ravens’ Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed inside out Thursday, or has watch Avant make highlight-reel catch after catch at Lehigh, or saw Chad Hall be open on every play versus Baltimore or hauling in gorgeous deep balls in practice Saturday, knows the Eagles have more quality depth at wideout than any other position.

And that doesn’t even bring LeSean McCoy, Brent Celek or Ronnie Brown’s receiving skills into play.

With Jackson back, the Birds have the home-run threat they need to keep defenses honest.

While Maclin would add a special dimension, Vick won’t lack for options with Avant, Cooper and Hall to choose from. Steve Smith certainly will help the cause too but he’s not likely to play until mid-season.

Eagles fans should be worried about Maclin’s health, of course, and the Birds are a better team with him lined up with Jackson in one of the league’s deadliest duos at wideout.

But even without Maclin, the Eagles’ offense will prosper.

So there’s no rush. Let Maclin get healthy and get healed, and when he is, the Eagles will get better. But they’re plenty good enough at wide receiver right now, even without Maclin.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Ralph Goldston, one of the first African-Americans to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, has died. He was 82.

Goldston played in 27 games for the Eagles between 1952-55. The team said he died on Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.

Goldston was a running back and defensive back. He played 10 seasons in the Canadian Football League after playing for the Eagles, and helped the Hamilton Tiger Cats win the Grey Cup in 1957
and 1963.

He is survived by his wife, Sarah, one son, Ralph Jr., three daughters, Ursula, Beverly and Monique, and five grandchildren.

Ralph Goldston, one of the first African-Americans to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, has died. He was 82.

Goldston played in 27 games for the Eagles between 1952-55. The team said he died on Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.

Goldston was a running back and defensive back. He played 10 seasons in theRBRB CFL after playing for the Eagles, and helped the Hamilton Tiger Cats win the Grey Cup in 1957 and 1963. He spent nine seasons with Hamilton, and retired following a season with the Montreal Alouettes in 1965.

He is survived by his wife, Sarah, one son, Ralph Jr., three daughters, Ursula, Beverly and Monique, and five grandchildren.