Eagles And Bills Know Each Other Well

PHILADELPHIA (CBS)--It will be somewhat of a reunion at the Linc Thursday night.

The Buffalo Bills will be in town to take on the Eagles in a preseason game featuring two teams quite familiar with each other.  There has been a strong football pipeline going in both directions from South Philadelphia to Western New York.  The most recent move came on Friday, when the Eagles traded Wide Receiver Jordan Matthews to the Bills for Cornerback Ronald Darby.  For players and coaches on both sides, there will be plenty of familiarity on Thursday night.  Former Bill Corey Graham will be in the Eagles secondary and is eager to go against some of his former teammates.

"You get little bit more into it than you normally would for a second preseason game," said Graham. "You're playing against a lot of your friends.  It's people you know personally.  You talk to them in the off-season.  Whenever you're playing against your friends, you want to show up.  It means a little bit more."

Graham played with the Bills the past three seasons before signing with the Eagles during the summer as a free agent.  Eagles Linebacker Nigel Bradham played with the Bills from 2012 through 2015.  Eagles Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz held the same position in Buffalo in 2014.  Eagles Offensive Coordinator Frank Reich was part of Buffalo's four-year Super Bowl run as a player in the 1990's. On the Bills' side, new Head Coach Sean McDermott was once an assistant with the Eagles and former Eagles standout LeSean McCoy remains one of the game's top running backs in Buffalo.

Eagles Head Coach Doug Pederson thinks it is merely a coincidence the two teams are playing after a major trade with each other, but Pederson can relate to what some of the players and coaches are feeling going against their old team.  Pederson was in a similar situation in Cleveland.

"You can't predict these things and you never know," Pederson said.  "It's funny because I was released by the Eagles in 1999 and then we played the Eagles.  It's just the way it works."

The Eagles will once again plan to rest most of their regulars as the top unit is expected to see limited action.  This will be the first preseason game at home for the Eagles this summer and Linebacker Nigel Bradham is hoping to put on a strong performance.

"We're looking forward to it," said Bradham.  "Our last game is away.  We definitely want to come out here and show our fans we're going to have a great one this year and make that playoff push."

Both teams are coming off losses in their first preseason contest.  Quarterback Carson Wentz is expected to be limited to the same amount of snaps as last week in Green Bay, but Wide Receiver Alshon Jeffery is likely to make his Philadelphia debut.  Darby is also scheduled to play despite having only three days of practice with his new team.  The man he was traded for will not play on Thursday.  Matthews suffered a chip fracture in his sternum during his first practice in Buffalo.  For Darby, it will be a bit strange to see his old team after being traded on Friday.  However, the cornerback and many of the other former Bills and Eagles who switched sides are looking forward to Thursday's reunion.

"It will be good to see them," said Darby.  "I just left a few days ago, so it will be a good thing."