Nick Sirianni and James Bradberry receive frigid summer welcomes to Foxborough

Maybe it's called 'southern hospitality' for a reason. Maybe people are more welcoming in our great nation's southern states. Frankly, we don't ever remember being treated harshly in Carolina or Atlanta when walking through downtown wearing Philadelphia Eagles paraphernalia during a road game. We have also never heard of New England or Boston hospitality.

Who are we kidding? There are days when we wonder if the 'City of Brotherly Love' tag still applies to our beloved Philly.

Here's our point. You'll never see any self-respecting Eagles fan allowing a Pats enthusiast to walk through Lincoln Financial Field's concourse wearing red, white, and blue without giving him a 'Philly welcome'. We never saw Tom Brady rock a Midnight or Kelly Green jersey.

They have met twice in a Super Bowl, but the Birds and Patriots don't cross paths often. None of that seemingly matters when they renew pleasantries though.

Nick Sirianni and James Bradberry receive the harshest of Foxborough welcomes as the Eagles and Patriots share a joint practice.

The NFL has made it known that fisticuffs won't be tolerated at these joint practices. They brought the hammer down following the New York Giants/Detroit Lions tilt. Everyone is aware of the league's watchful eye, so the unnecessary roughness may be at its end.

Any Eagles trip to Foxborough still feels like a trip behind enemy lines though. Tuesday's practice was evident of that as Nick Sirianni and James Bradberry received some New England hospitality. Coach felt it from the fans. James was abused by members of the Patriots roster.

Imagine being Nick Sirianni for a second. Things didn't go as planned last season. People wonder if your players respect you in some cases or even like you in others. Everyone believes your job is in jeopardy.

Then, you have to walk into a joint practice shortly after a chat with media members and hear the following:

By 'Bill', said fan is referencing former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick. Perhaps you may have heard. As the ever-churning rumor mill has kept the hot takes flowing, the legend has been mentioned as Sirianni's possible replacement if the Eagles elect to move on after this season.

But, let's get back to the heckling. Now, that we mention it, this may not be that bad. Coach will hear worse from the Philly faithful all season long at The Linc and on Philly sports radio. Heaven knows he has been known to tune in to both.

Let's talk about James Bradberry...

It's hard to believe how far the 2022 Second-Team All-Pro has fallen. Had you told us then that he and Avonte Maddox would be Philly's second-team safeties just under two years later, we probably would have had a hard time believing you.

These days, James could benefit from as many positive reps as possible. Early during Philly and New England's joint practice, the opposite happened. Wouldn't you know it? In a social media age, someone managed to capture the entire thing on camera.

Notice he's lined up versus a safety. Notice the tug and that a flag was thrown. We'd also like to point out that still didn't stop Drake Maye and Mitchell Wilcox from connecting.

We have talked about James so often since his noticeable decline began that one might be led to believe we're picking on him. We aren't, but we do understand that most unfavorable mentions of him feel like the equivalent of 'kicking a man while he is down

So, let's end this on a high note. The truth is he's better at zone than man coverage and these 1-on-1 reps favor the offensive player. Also, James has had a decent camp. We can't let one 11-second clip discredit that.

He made up for this snafu by breaking up a pass versus the Patriots' first-team offense. That one was launched by Jacoby Brissett and was intended for Austin Hooper. That is more consistent with what we have seen from him throughout camp.

More often than not, he has played well while trying to transition to a new position. In the end, that's the point of these practices. Learn from mistakes and get better.

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