PHILADELPHIA – Josh McCown wasn't necessarily looking to come out of retirement.

The 40-year-old was doing some work as an analyst on ESPN and coaching his sons in high school football in Charlotte, North Carolina.

So when teams would call during the offseason to see if he was interested in returning, McCown would get a text from his agent. McCown's response was always the same:

"I would say, 'No, I’m good right now,' and would leave it at that," McCown said Sunday. "That was the boundary I tried to set in order not to go. It was good for me to spend a great amount of time with my family and go through an offseason where I wasn’t traveling and having to go back and forth from a city doing OTAs and stuff like that, so that was beneficial for me."

Then the Eagles called on Friday.

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The next day, McCown came out of retirement and signed a one-year contract reportedly guaranteed for $2 million with incentives that could make it worth as much as $5.4 million.

"There were only a certain number of teams I think I would be interested in and that met the criteria I talked about, and this was certainly one of them," McCown said. "It was cool when this opportunity came up and we started to talk about it as a family. They were excited, and they were like, ‘Man, you gotta go.’"

The Eagles also need McCown.

And with the guaranteed salary for this season, he'll have every opportunity to become the backup quarterback. Nate Sudfeld, the perceived backup to Carson Wentz, broke his left wrist on Aug. 8, and isn't expected back until late September.

Cody Kessler, who was replacing Sudfeld, suffered a concussion against the Jaguars on Thursday. There's no telling when he will return. He watched practice Sunday, but still has to be cleared by an independent neurologist before he can play again.

When asked if McCown was in line to be the backup, Eagles coach Doug Pederson responded: "We're not there yet. We gotta get Nate back, but we’re not there yet, as far as who’s 2, who’s 3."

As for McCown, he said one of the criteria had to do with being on a Super Bowl contender. McCown, who was drafted in the third round in 2002 by the Arizona Cardinals, when Eagles coach Doug Pederson was a backup quarterback to Brett Favre in Green Bay, had mostly been on bad teams in his 17-year career.

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As a starter during his career with seven other teams, McCown is 23-53. He spent the last two seasons with the Jets.

In fact, McCown's teams have only gone to the playoffs once in 17 seasons, in 2008 with the Carolina Panthers. McCown has never played in the postseason.

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Pederson was asked what he liked most about McCown. He responded with a laugh:

"He’s 40. He’s close to my age."

Then, more seriously, Pederson said: "Listen, he’s a veteran quarterback. He’s been around. He’s seen a lot. He’s a guy that just can add a lot of knowledge and depth in that room ... Obviously, he played this position and started a ton of games in this league, (and we're) excited to get him going and get him up to speed."

Eagles wide receiver Alshon Jeffery is familiar with McCown, too. They were teammates with the Chicago Bears in 2012-13, Jeffery's first two seasons in the NFL. They bonded quickly, in part through their love of basketball.

"That’s my guy," McCown said.

Added Jeffery: "Josh is awesome. I don’t know one person that I know that can say nothing bad about him. He’s a great father. He’s a great human being. Just a guy that you love being around. Just come into the room and everyone gravitates to him."

Then McCown was asked why he chose to wear No. 18. He said part of it was because it's his 18th season in the NFL, and another part was because he wanted to stand next to Jeffery, No. 17, in the team photo.

For now, Pederson is worried about getting McCown ready.

On Sunday, McCown stood next to the coaches and quarterbacks and watched during the team drills. The Eagles will spend the next two days practicing with the Ravens before playing them on Thursday.

Pederson didn't rule out playing McCown against the Ravens.

But first, McCown said he is trying to get back into football shape.

"I feel good," he said. "I was coaching high school football on the field and playing hoops and trying to stay active. I’m not really somebody who likes to sit still, so hopefully it won’t be too big of a transition.

"Obviously playing professional football is different. I wasn’t necessarily training for that, but at the same time I was pretty active."

Now, he'll be even more active.

Army offensive lineman eager

It was also the first day of practice for offensive lineman Brett Toth, who was given a waiver from the military to pursue a pro football career. The Eagles signed him last Friday.

Toth said he weighs 290 pounds on his 6-foot-6 frame, and would like to get to 315 pounds "as soon as possible."

"I had to get within the height and weight regulations within the Army, and again, you don’t really want an offensive lineman that’s down to 260," Toth said. "So whenever I could, I was getting into the strength room (at his military base). I just gotta get my moves and technique back."

Toth, who plays tackle, is considered a project. And he's going to continue his military training at Temple's ROTC program in his spare time. But he wants to learn as much as possible on the football field.

"The quickest way to learn to swim is just get into the water," he said.

Injury updates

Right guard Brandon Brooks was not cleared to take part in team drills after he was examined last week by doctors as he continues to rehab his torn Achilles. Brooks said it's part of the progression, and he can take part in 1-on-1 drills with defensive linemen this week. Brooks is still hopeful to be ready for Week 1 ... Linebacker Paul Worrilow did not take part in practice Sunday. The Delaware native has been dealing with issues related to his recovery from a torn ACL ... Tight end Richard Rodgers returned to practice for the first time in two weeks after suffering a foot injury.

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.