PHILADELPHIA -- Dorsey Levens wants to play more than he did in Green Bay. He could get that chance in Philadelphia.

The Eagles, looking for a running back to replace Correll Buckhalter and probably split time with Duce Staley, brought in Levens for a visit on Monday.

Buckhalter, who was expected to play a bigger role in Philadelphia's offense this season, went down with a season-ending knee injury on the first day of minicamp Friday.

Levens, the fourth-leading rusher in Packers history with 3,937 yards, was cut for salary cap purposes in February.

"I just want an opportunity to play a little bit more," Levens, 31, said. "In Green Bay, the situation didn't really present itself once Ahman Green came on the scene and started doing his thing. I don't want to play too much longer and I really don't want to sit on the bench the last couple of years of my career."

Levens is familiar with the Eagles' West Coast offense, having played in a similar one in Green Bay. He was with the Packers when Eagles coach Andy Reid was an assistant there.

"It was a great visit," Levens said. "We talked about the old days in Green Bay, the old Super Bowl teams, stuff like that. Real casual, real fun, nothing too serious."

A fifth-round draft pick out of Georgia Tech in 1994, Levens led the Packers in rushing in both 1997 (1,435 yards) and 1999 (1,034). His 271 receptions are the most by a running back in team history.

Levens also is Green Bay's leading rusher in the playoffs, with 647 yards and 41 catches. His current string of receptions in 13 straight playoff games is the longest in team history.

Injuries limited Levens to four starts in 1998 and five in 2000, when he lost his starting job to Green, who has posted consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and was selected to the Pro Bowl last season.

Last year, Levens had 164 yards on 44 carries, 24 catches for 145 yards and one touchdown and a 25.9-yard average on 14 kickoff returns.

Buckhalter tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee when he stumbled while making a cut after catching a short pass. He will need surgery, and should be out up to a year.

A fourth-round pick out of Nebraska, Buckhalter broke the Eagles' rookie rushing record last year with 586 yards in 15 games. He emerged when Staley went down with a shoulder injury in the second week of the season, ran for 99 yards and one touchdown in his first start against Dallas, and had 134 yards against Arizona a week later.

Buckhalter returned to a backup role when Staley returned, but finished with 129 carries and an average of 4.5 yards per carry. Staley, who was returning from a foot injury that forced him to miss the final 13 games of the 2000 season, ran 166 times for 604 yards last season, an average of just 3.6 yards per carry.

The Eagles got within 52 yards of advancing to the Super Bowl last year before losing 29-24 to St. Louis in the NFC championship game.

Philadelphia, which failed to sign free agent running back Warrick Dunn this offseason, added running back Bryan Westbrook in the third round of the NFL draft two weeks ago.

Reid said former No. 1 overall pick Ki-Jana Carter, who was with Washington last season, also will visit this week.