4 days ago
Eagles welcome back several familiar faces during joint practice with Browns
It's always great to see familiar faces at the Eagles' NovaCare Complex.
In some ways, it was 60 seconds of the most exciting football we had ever seen at Veterans Stadium. The Philadelphia Eagles were playing their final game there, one vs. a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team they had beaten on the home turf many times before.
Brian Mitchell came oh so close to housing one on the opening kickoff. His 70-yard return set Philly up with a first-and-ten scenario at Tampa's 26-yard line. Two plays later, a loud and sustained Duce Staley serenade crescendoed into a thunderous roar. The scoreboard read 7-0 in the Eagles' favor just 52 seconds into the NFC Championship game.
Sadly, things didn't end well. The Bucs punched their ticket to the Super Bowl, so maybe we should have referenced The Pickle Juice Game or something. Here's the point. Duce Staley is an Eagle. We'll always love him for what he did as a player and coach for the organization. Now, with the Cleveland Browns, he returned home to the NovaCare Complex as the two teams began the first of two joint practices before they meet to play in a preseason game.
Staley wasn't the only familiar face we saw. The Browns also brought a few other former Eagles on the trip. Former defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and vice president of football operations Andrew Berry are in town, too, as is Kenny Pickett.
Okay, that's it for nostalgia. This is now about competition, and the Birds get to hit someone other than the guys in the familiar jerseys. Here comes a couple of spirited practices before Cleveland's visit ends with a second preseason game on Saturday.
