Appearing on Sunday NFL Countdown, ESPN's Chris Mortensen said that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz "hasn't been ruled out" for a Week 2 return against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, though he still has not yet been cleared by doctors.

"There is much more optimism that prevails than pessimism," said Mortensen. "He hasn’t been ruled out for Week 2, (but) he hasn’t been cleared. I think that the organizational sources I’ve spoken with say they wouldn’t be surprised if he’s ready for Week 3.

"Now Wentz gave the Eagles’ aggressive defense a great scout team look, playing (the role of) Matt Ryan on the scout team. He got bumped around, he got stepped on. His GPS data is trending toward playing sooner than later. The key final piece of data is, can he protect himself?

"He has reached that threshold in being able to protect himself. So, sooner than later on Carson Wentz."

A Week 2 return feels unlikely, especially against an already bad team in the Buccaneers who will also be missing their starting quarterback. The Eagles don't need Wentz to beat that team. But certainly, this report is an optimistic one, and good news for Wentz's recovery.