He’s not a star or even a starter, but he made an impact almost every week, and when he was gone he was missed.

Now Colt Anderson is ready to return. Anderson is the Eagles’ special-teams specialist, the captain of that unit and its most productive player. He tore up a knee in Week 12 last season and missed all of training camp and the preseason while he rehabbed. He was deactivated for the opener against the Browns but should get a chance to play this week against the Ravens.

“Colt is ready to play,’’ coach Andy Reid said on Wednesday. “He’s done everything that he can do to get himself ready to play in a game. He’s gone through practice. He’s practiced fast. He didn’t have any setbacks, no swelling, soreness, or any of that. The knee felt tight, and so now he has an opportunity to possibly get in the game and contribute. That’s what he wants and that’s what we want.’’

Anderson said he could have played last week and is more than ready to play this week.

“I expect to be out there and play and pick up where I left off,’’ he said. “I took (practice this week) like I was playing in the game, and I went 100 miles an hour. I felt good and I felt comfortable.”

And that is comforting to special teams coach Bobby April, who uses Anderson on every unit and relies on him like the offense relies on Michael Vick.

“He makes all our big plays, and if he’s not making them, he’s creating the circumstances for someone else to make a successful play,’’ April said. “The quicker we get him back, the better.”

Gilyard finally catches on: Free agent Mardy Gilyard played as well as any WR during training camp, but he was fighting a numbers battle he couldn’t win and the Eagles reluctantly released him on the final cut-down day.

Then, starter Jeremy Maclin suffered a hip-pointer in the opener against the Browns -- Maclin didn’t practice on Wednesday, but Reid didn’t rule him out for Sunday -- and a little more than a week after the Eagles fired Gilyard, they rehired him.

“You saw Mardy make plays (in the preseason),’’ Reid said. “That’s really what [it came down to]. He was really able to handle the X and Z positions mentally and then he went out and made plays. Now we’re giving him an opportunity to come back here. We had a lot of tough cuts that we had to make and that was one of them.”

Gilyard also knows the playbook, so he could play right away if needed. Riley Cooper (collarbone) practiced some on Wednesday, but it’s unlikely he’ll be ready by Sunday. If Maclin can’t play, the Eagles would be down to three WRs besides Gilyard -- DeSean Jackson, Jason Avant and undrafted rookie Damaris Johnson.

Reid raves about Ravens: Andy Reid had words of high praise for the two leaders of the Ravens defense, MLB Ray Lewis and S Ed Reed.

First, Lewis: “He’s a Hall of Famer,’’ Reid said. "He’s a heck of a player. He’s a good man. He’s good for the game. He understands how to play the game. He’s doing what it takes to play in today’s football and doing whatever he feels it takes. I have a lot of respect for him.”

And Reid said Reed belongs in the Hall of Fame, too. “… even though he spells his name wrong.”

For more up-to-the-minute news and analysis on the Philadelphia Eagles from blogger Kevin Noonan, follow @CBSEagles.