Marcus Smith

Eagles first-round draft choice Marcus Smith will experience his first NFL game in more ways than one Friday night in the preseason opener against the Bears. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

PHILADELPHIA -- Friday night will be a night of firsts for Eagles first-round draft choice outside linebacker Marcus Smith.

Not only will it be Smith's NFL debut and first real glimpse of actual game speed, but it will be the first time he's even attended an NFL game.

Ever.

Despite growing up in Atlanta, Smith, whom the Eagles selected with the 26th overall pick in May's NFL draft, says he never made it to the Georgia Dome growing up.

"Yeah, this moment is going to be great, just the first preseason game and it's also the first preseason game that I'm playing in, it's also the first NFL game that I've been to," Smith explained after Wednesday's walkthrough practice at the Novacare Complex. "My Dad will be out there watching me play, so it will be a great day for me. When we were in Atlanta, we never went up to a Falcons game so this will be the first game that I'm at and the first game I'm playing in."

Smith was dominant as a senior at Louisville, registering 14.5 sacks before being chosen by the Eagles in the first round.

After spending most of the spring with the third-team defense, Smith has been elevated in recent days to the second unit and rotating between the Jack outside linebacker position (responsible for both rushing the passer and dropping into coverage) as well as the predator (simply getting to the quarterback) during training camp practices.

Knowing that it can be an adjustment for rookies when they get into an NFL game for the first time, Eagles head coach Chip Kelly says he just doesn't want to see his first-round pick get overwhelmed by the moment Friday.

"I have the same expectations [for everyone]," Kelly said Wednesday. "It doesn't matter if you were the first pick or you were an undrafted free agent or we signed you in the off-season. We don't have any different expectations for Marcus than we do for [DT] Beau Allen.

"It's really a chance to get to see guys in live action with officials in a different setting and see which guys can show up a little bit, and that's the interesting thing of this, there's going to be some guys that I think maybe someone didn't have an idea where they were going to be, and there's going to be some other guys that maybe will disappoint, but you don't know until you can put them into action."

Smith pointed out that the Eagles' veterans have tried to get him up to speed on what it will be like in an NFL game, but as the preseason opener beckons, there's only one way to find out and that is to experience it for himself.

"I'm really curious to see how it will play out," Smith said. "I just want to be able to go out there, make plays and be able to show the coaches that they can trust me to be out there."

Follow Matt Lombardo on Twitter: @MattLombardo975