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Author: Jeff Neiburg

  • Villanova’s careless ballhandling, offensive struggles, and other takeaways from blowout loss to Michigan

    Villanova’s careless ballhandling, offensive struggles, and other takeaways from blowout loss to Michigan

    Villanova‘s winning streak reached seven games Saturday when it blew out Penn in the Big 5 Classic championship game. A season-opening loss to nationally ranked BYU in Las Vegas preceded a stretch of games in which Kevin Willard’s Wildcats didn’t have any blips.

    They beat their next seven opponents by an average margin of 19.7 points, and at 7-1 entering this week even made it onto some Associated Press Top 25 voters’ ballots as they climbed to KenPom’s 35th-ranked team by adjusted efficiency. But those wins came against teams ranked 142nd or lower by KenPom metrics.

    A year later than planned, Villanova wins its latest women’s Big 5 title

    The tuneups were over, and it was time for a test. Perhaps the biggest test of all: against No. 2 Michigan, a team that has been a buzz saw of sorts through the first five weeks of the college basketball season.

    Villanova learned that the hard way Tuesday night in Ann Arbor, Mich., where the Wildcats were run off the floor in an 89-61 loss.

    Here’s what we learned from Villanova’s step up in competition:

    First, the context

    Let’s get out of the way first how good Michigan is. The Wolverines are the No. 1 team at both of the main college hoops metrics sites, KenPom and Torvik. They ran through the Players Era tournament in Las Vegas a few weeks ago with wins of 40, 30, and 40 points over San Diego State, Auburn, and Gonzaga, the third-ranked team at KenPom and Torvik.

    Dusty May has his Michigan squad undefeated at 9-0.

    Then Michigan started Big Ten play Saturday with a 101-60 victory over Rutgers.

    Dusty May has built a team that will compete for a national title, and one that could be capable of making history along the way.

    Kevin Willard may soon have his Massimino moment at Villanova, but does this Big 5 format make sense for all?

    Carelessness with the ball

    That being said, Villanova wasn’t nearly good enough, and it started right away with a deer-in-the-headlights start that enabled Michigan to pull away early.

    What you can’t do against the best defensive team in the country is give away possessions, and Villanova did that way too often.

    Freshman point guard Acaden Lewis had two turnovers in the first five minutes. Villanova watched as its best defensive possession ended with a Michigan offensive rebound and putback. Then came a lazy pass from Bryce Lindsay to Tafara Gapare that led to a runaway dunk by Yaxel Lendeborg that upped Michigan’s lead to 19-7.

    Willard called timeout, and the ensuing inbound resulted in a 10-second violation. Michigan scored at the other end on another second-chance basket and its lead was 21-7 with 13 minutes, 40 seconds to go in the first half.

    Kevin Willard’s Villanova squad turned the ball over 15 times against Michigan.

    Villanova turned it over 10 times in the first half, far too often to have a chance against this type of opponent, and 15 times overall. Six Wildcats each had two turnovers. Michigan had 15 offensive rebounds to Villanova’s six.

    Where’s the offense?

    Defense has been a problem for the Wildcats over the first five weeks of the season, even against some lighter competition. But offense hasn’t been very worrisome.

    Until Tuesday.

    Again, Michigan is the best defensive team in the country with its mixture of size, length, and athleticism, but Villanova is going to face some pretty good defenses in the Big East, and there were some concerning things Tuesday night.

    Michigan took Lewis and Lindsay out of the game. If not for the isolation skills of Devin Askew, it might have been 53-13 at halftime instead of 53-23. This was Lewis’ first real test since he was benched vs. BYU in the opener, and he wasn’t good enough at getting Villanova into its offense, though he got better as the game went on (and already was out of reach).

    The Wildcats got assists on 57.7% of their makes entering Tuesday. They had just six assists on 21 makes Tuesday (28.6%), and one of them came on a last-second three-pointer.

    Inside the Big 5 coaching fraternity: From wanting to ‘kill each other’ to being ‘brothers’

    Michigan, with its length, took away Villanova’s chances at the rim, and the Wildcats were forced to bomb away from three-point range, especially when they started trailing. They made just 10 of their 37 attempts.

    “You try to,” Willard told reporters Tuesday when asked if creating threes was the plan. “But it’s not easy against a very connected defensive team.

    “Everyone talks about their offense, but everything is predicated on their defense.”

    Rotation roulette

    Part of Villanova’s problems on offense came from issues that may pop up against better competition. Willard had to decide what he had tolerance for. Lewis and Lindsay were getting beaten defensively, but reserves Malachi Palmer and Gapare offered little help offensively.

    The second unit on the floor meant only Askew could be relied on for offense.

    Villanova’s Devin Askew led the team with 18 points against Michigan.

    Beyond that, it’s apparent that Willard doesn’t think backup big man Braden Pierce is ready to contribute. He’s Villanova’s only rotation 7-footer, and against a Michigan team that has 7-3 center Aday Mara, Pierce barely saw the floor. Neither did Temple transfer Zion Stanford, who logged just three minutes. Stanford only recently returned from an ankle injury, but he is playing just 5.8 minutes per game.

    The game got out of reach fast, but it still seems like Willard is trying to figure out his best mix of players, and that will be something to monitor moving forward.

    What’s next?

    Tuesday was the kind of game that doesn’t hurt when you lose and really helps when you win.

    Up next is the opposite. Villanova welcomes Pittsburgh to Finneran Pavilion on Saturday, and while the ACC school isn’t one of the cupcakes that have been on Villanova’s schedule to date, the 5-5 Panthers aren’t very good. Villanova will be expected to win, but it will be another chance to see the new-look Wildcats against a power-conference foe.

    From there, only a Dec. 19 trip to Milwaukee to face a solid Wisconsin team separates Villanova from its Big East opener on Dec. 23 at Seton Hall.

    The real games are underway, and the Wildcats took a big punch Tuesday.

  • A.J. Brown ‘wasn’t great when it mattered’ as key drops doomed the Eagles in loss to Chargers

    A.J. Brown ‘wasn’t great when it mattered’ as key drops doomed the Eagles in loss to Chargers

    INGLEWOOD, Calif. — A.J. Brown believes he has the “best hands in the world.”

    The Eagles’ star receiver, who has been open about the need for the passing game and the offense as a whole to meet its potential, and for the team to take advantage of his abilities, reached 100 yards for the third consecutive game.

    He had six catches for 100 yards and made a few key plays. But late Monday night inside the visitors’ locker room at SoFi Stadium, it was the passes that hit his hands and landed elsewhere that stood out the most and had Brown looking inward.

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts turns it over five times in yet another poor offensive display

    The Eagles lost for a variety of reasons to extend their slump to three games. Jalen Hurts was nowhere near good enough. They had untimely penalties. Jake Elliott missed a field goal that proved pivotal. But Brown knows his three drops changed the game.

    Each one in isolation could have produced a different result Monday night. He wanted all of them back, he said, and probably was going to spend the cross-country flight home thinking about them before he planned to “flush” the game when the plane touched down in Philadelphia.

    Brown touched on all three drops.

    There was the first play from scrimmage of the game, a broken play that resulted in Hurts launching a deep ball up the left sideline. “I wish I could have somehow found a way to make that one,” Brown said.

    The second came four minutes into the fourth quarter with the Eagles leading, 16-13. One play earlier, Hurts scrambled to his right and connected with Darius Cooper for a 19-yard gain that moved the Eagles to near midfield. The Eagles were on the move and looking to add to their lead and put what had earlier looked like a sure loss to bed. Hurts took a shotgun snap, faked a handoff to Saquon Barkley, and fired a pass over the middle to a crossing Brown near the Chargers’ 40-yard line. The throw was high, and Chargers linebacker Denzel Perryman was closing in, but Brown couldn’t haul in the pass as it tipped off his fingertips and into the hands of cornerback Cam Hart.

    Los Angeles drove down the field and tied the score with a field goal.

    “The ball over the middle, I know it wasn’t perfect, but I’m more than capable of making that catch,” Brown said.

    “That was just going to be another tough one. I’m more than capable of making that grab for [Hurts]. He stepped up in the pocket, he’s under pressure.”

    The third one hurt the most, though.

    On a second-and-11 from the Chargers’ 26-yard line with less than three minutes to play and the score tied at 16, the Eagles got Brown in one-on-one coverage with Hart. Hurts struggled for most of the night, but this throw was one of his best. He dropped a deep pass into a perfect spot for Brown to catch it. Hart made a decent play at the point of attack, but the 28-year-old receiver has made many similar and more difficult plays, and this one probably would have given the Eagles a needed victory.

    Forget 2023. The Eagles are in bigger trouble now after their loss to the Chargers.

    “He just made a play,” Brown said. “That one hurt the most because we’ve been setting things up all game, and he made a play. That one hurt me. I’m more than capable of making those plays. Jalen trusts me in any situation. I made some plays, but I wasn’t great when it mattered.”

    And so the Eagles, and Brown, are going “back to the drawing board,” Brown said.

    They have now gone five consecutive games without topping 21 points. It is the first time in the Nick Sirianni era that has happened and a first for any Eagles team since 2005. An impotent offense has been the story of the season, and while there were small flashes Monday, it was more of the same.

    “It’s the same thing every week,” DeVonta Smith said. “Do something good, shoot ourselves in the foot. Nobody is doing nothing to stop us. We’re stopping ourselves every time, putting ourselves back behind the sticks. We get something going, and we just do some dumb s—.”

    Like turn the ball over. Hurts threw a career-high four interceptions, but Smith said the receivers were responsible for two of them. Smith blamed himself for the second interception, saying he fell. The other, Smith said, was on Brown.

    “S— happens,” he said.

    Said Brown: “You always have to look inward and be honest with yourself first and foremost. Take accountability and find a way to fix it as quickly as possible.

    “As soon as I get off the plane, it’s going to be flushed because you have to. It’s a part of the game, it’s a part of playing at a high level. I’m catching like 500 balls a day. I pride myself on making those catches.

    “I could go out there and drop 100 balls, but I’m still going to believe in me, believe in my hands. I believe that I got the best hands in the world. But sometimes it don’t go your way, and that’s a part of it. You got to have thick skin and go back to work.”

    That work begins right away. The Eagles were due to land Tuesday morning and will be back on the practice field Wednesday in a short week with the Las Vegas Raiders coming to town Sunday.

    The Eagles still have a 1½-game lead in the NFC East, and they finish the season with a game against the two-win Raiders before playing two of their final three against the three-win Washington Commanders.

    “Everything is still right in front of us,” Brown said. “There’s still so much to be optimistic about. These tough losses, tough little stretch, I’m not going to say it’s humbling us, but we are doing what we need to do, going back to work and taking pride into that and [getting] this thing turned around at the right time. It’s one week at a time.”

    It gets late early, though, and the Eagles are running out of weeks to make their necessary fixes.

  • Saquon Barkley says the vibes on the Eagles’ sideline have been ‘awful.’ He can help change the mood.

    Saquon Barkley says the vibes on the Eagles’ sideline have been ‘awful.’ He can help change the mood.

    LOS ANGELES — The sky is falling in the city of Philadelphia, just not between Broad and 17th Streets, from Pattison Avenue to Hartranft Street. There, at the NovaCare Complex, the laws of gravitational pull and atmospheric pressure remain normal.

    The 8-4 Eagles have lost two consecutive games, their second such losing streak of the season. Their offense, under first-year coordinator Kevin Patullo, can be generously described as inconsistent and harshly described at times as incompetent. The defense, normally a steady strength, got tossed around on Black Friday against the Chicago Bears.

    “They sky’s falling outside the locker room,” Saquon Barkley said after that game.

    Not inside.

    The Eagles, Barkley included, say the energy at the practice facility reflects that. The Eagles have been attentive in the meeting room. They have had spirited practices. They feel like they have the right game plans.

    “But [you’ve] got to go out there Monday and do it,” Barkley said Saturday after the Eagles finished their final practice before their Monday night matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. “That’s where we’re at.”

    That’s where the translation hasn’t occurred. The Eagles are struggling, and the vibes on the sideline reflect a team that is trying hard to correct its issues without success.

    “Honestly I think it’s been awful,” Barkley said when asked what the sideline energy has been like. “I think if you asked anybody, if they’re being honest, we’ll all agree on that.”

    Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is stopped by the Bears on Nov. 28.

    To be fair, who could blame them? The Eagles, with one of the highest-paid offenses in the NFL, haven’t scored more than 21 points in four consecutive games. Barkley ran for 2,000 yards last season but is finding it difficult at times to top 50 during a given game. The principals in the passing game haven’t been able to get on the same page, as evidenced by the sequence in which Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith didn’t have their signals down and missed a potential touchdown in the loss to the Bears.

    “We haven’t been playing well,” Barkley said. “It’s easy to come on the sideline and have great energy when you rip off a 60-yard touchdown. That’s the truth. We know that.”

    Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Chargers in Week 14: What you need to know and a prediction

    Barkley went back to a saying he picked up from offensive line coach and running game coordinator Jeff Stoutland. “Execution fuels emotion,” Barkley said. “When you make plays and score touchdowns it’s going to get the energy going on game days. Energy has been great throughout the week of practice.

    “We got to carry that to game day.”

    There’s an argument to be made that Barkley and the running game can lead the charge in changing those vibes. The Eagles have faced defenses that have keyed in on stopping the run. Only four teams are pitted against a stacked box more often than the Eagles, who see eight or more defenders in the box 32.7% of the time.

    Patullo and Stoutland haven’t yet figured out a way to consistently break through against the opposition, and the passing game hasn’t been good enough for defenses to change their approach. Barkley’s blockers have been banged up, which has certainly affected the outcomes, but Barkley does not look like the same runner, either. He has had a nagging groin injury that hasn’t forced him to miss any time, and he has repeatedly said he is healthy.

    New wrinkles are on the way, left tackle Jordan Mailata said earlier in the practice week leading into Monday’s game vs. the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Barkley smiled Saturday when asked about the topic. “I don’t know what change they’re talking about,” he said.

    “I really love the game plan.”

    Barkley said he thinks positivity is important on the sideline.

    “It’s kind of been a role I’ve tried to take on ever since I came into the league,” he said. “I feel like it’s big. Sometimes it’s just the sense of having confidence and having great energy is going to help us out on the football field. I’m a believer in that.”

    A few feet away from Barkley’s locker stall as he spoke Saturday in the locker room at the NovaCare Complex was a large inflatable Easter bunny. Barkley said he didn’t know how it arrived there. Earlier in the day, though, AJ Dillon took the credit. The backup running back, who has been a healthy scratch, has anointed himself the “vibes guy.”

    “I was told that it’s a vibes bunny,” Barkley said. “And the vibes are high.”

    Gipson waived

    The Eagles on Sunday waived wide receiver and returner Xavier Gipson. They now have an open spot on the 53-man roster, which will likely go to safety Marcus Epps, who is expected to be activated from injured reserve and could start next to Reed Blankenship on Monday night.

    Gipson missed the Eagles’ Week 13 game with a shoulder injury, one he suffered during a mistake on a punt return that helped flip the result of the team’s Week 12 loss to Dallas. The team will continue to use Britain Covey as a returner.

    The Eagles also downgraded Myles Hinton (back) to out for Monday’s game. Hinton’s 21-day practice window is nearing its end. The Eagles have until Wednesday to activate their rookie offensive tackle or he will be sidelined for the rest of the season — like fellow rookie lineman Willie Lampkin, whose window expired on Nov. 27.

  • Darius Slay won’t report to the Bills. Is he an option for the Eagles?

    Darius Slay won’t report to the Bills. Is he an option for the Eagles?

    Darius Slay is apparently considering retiring from the NFL after he decided to not report to the Buffalo Bills, the claiming team he was awarded to after the Pittsburgh Steelers placed him on waivers.

    Slay, who will turn 35 next month, told Emmanuel Acho on the Speakeasy podcast Thursday night that he is “50-50″ on whether he will continue playing or not.

    But Philadelphia is Slay’s “second home,” he said, and the Eagles, according to NFL sources, also put a claim in for Slay, who was awarded to the Bills because they had higher priority in the NFL’s waiver order.

    Acho asked Slay if he would have reported to the Eagles, had the team he spent five seasons and won a Super Bowl with in February been awarded his rights.

    “I honestly don’t know, man,” Slay said before mentioning how he has enjoyed being home with his family in the days since his release from the Steelers, who made him a healthy scratch last week vs. the Bills.

    “It just felt good to be there,” he said. “It would have been a hard time to think about it. But Philly is my second home. I don’t know how that would have hit, if that would have hit. But when I got home the other day, I’m like, ‘shoot this feel too good to be at the crib.’”

    Slay also cited the inconvenience of moving to Buffalo and the city’s cold weather as reasons for not initially wanting to report to the AFC contender.

    Eagles vs. Chargers predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 14

    There is obvious mutual interest between the Eagles and Slay, should the cornerback decide he wants to continue playing. The Eagles haven’t shored up their second cornerback spot opposite Quinyon Mitchell after letting Slay walk in free agency. Slay looked more his age with the Steelers, who he signed with for one year and $10 million. But his familiarity with Vic Fangio’s scheme and the Eagles’ obvious concerns with their cornerback depth make it a fit.

    Could Slay still end up with the Eagles?

    It’s possible, but there are some mechanics involved that seem to make a reunion unlikely. The Bills placed Slay on the reserve/did not report list on Friday, removing him from their 53-man roster. They will retain his rights if he decides to continue his playing career. That is similar to how the Eagles handled cornerback Jaire Alexander after he decided to step away from football following his trade to the Eagles in November. They put Alexander on the reserve/retired list and retained his rights.

    Eagles cornerback Darius Slay celebrates an interception in the 2025 playoffs.

    The Bills could release Slay if he wants to continue playing, though there’s recent enough precedent under their current regime to suggest that they wouldn’t. Former NFL receiver Anquan Boldin decided to retire before the 2017 season began after signing with the Bills. He later asked the Bills to release him so he could play with another team, but Bills general manager Brandon Beane, then in his first season with Buffalo, declined that request.

    It’s unclear if Slay would have to go back through waivers if the Bills released him.

    It would seem unlikely, however, that Beane would release Slay to appease his desire to play for a potential Super Bowl opponent. The Eagles and Bills also play in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Dec. 28.

    Inquirer staff writer Jeff McLane contributed reporting to this story.

  • Eagles vs. Chargers predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 14

    Eagles vs. Chargers predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 14

    The Eagles bring their two-game losing streak with them to sunny California for a Monday Night Football showdown with the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.

    It’s a matchup of 8-4 teams jockeying for playoff positioning in their respective conferences.

    Who has the edge? Here’s how our writers see it …

    Jeff Neiburg

    No Jalen Carter against a team with one of the best rushing attacks in the NFL, with the Eagles coming off a game in which they allowed 281 yards on the ground. The Eagles’ offense hasn’t produced more than 21 points in their last four games. The maligned offensive coordinator’s house was vandalized.

    With Jalen Carter out, the Eagles’ defense faces an ‘accountability’ test at a critical juncture

    All signs point to a Chargers win and the continuation of an Eagles collapse that has people pointing to 2023 for a comparison, right?

    The oddsmakers don’t seem to agree. The Eagles are a 2½-point favorite, according to ESPN Bet as of Thursday evening. And that feels about right.

    Justin Herbert is wearing a cast on his left hand, and the Chargers have a passing attack that should play into the Eagles’ hands, as long as they’re able to stop the run and get Herbert into third-and-longs. That may seem like a big ask without Carter, and it is, but the Eagles have had a solid enough run defense for most of the season to think Vic Fangio and Co. will make sure the last performance was just a one-game blip.

    The Chargers do have a good defense, particularly their pass defense. But they did give up 30 first downs and 35 points to the Jaguars just a few weeks ago, a game that included Jacksonville rushing for 192 yards.

    I keep thinking each game is a get-right game for the Eagles, and while I’m not sure the offense necessarily breaks out Monday night, I expect the Eagles to do enough to win the game, especially given the potential limitations facing Herbert.

    Prediction: Eagles 23, Chargers 20

    Olivia Reiner

    Something about this game is giving Bears 2.0 vibes.

    Like the Bears, the Chargers are a team with a strong record against a favorable schedule, leaving some room for doubt about the legitimacy of their success this season.

    But unlike the Bears, the Chargers are arguably more well-rounded on both sides of the ball. Herbert is one of the league’s best passers, ranking in the top five in completions, passing yards, and passing touchdowns since he entered the league in 2020. When Herbert is incapacitated, like he was last week with his fractured nonthrowing hand, the Chargers’ run game compensated with nearly 200 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

    The Chargers are at a disadvantage on the offensive line, as evidenced by Herbert’s third-most sacks in the league this season (38). But the Eagles will be missing one of their top defenders in Carter (shoulders), giving the Chargers a break on the interior. If Herbert is limited by his injury, the Chargers are going to want to run the ball again, and the Carter-less Eagles can’t afford a repeat of the D’Andre Swift-Kyle Monangai experience.

    Darius Slay won’t report to the Bills as he contemplates retirement. Is he an option for the Eagles?

    Meanwhile, Hurts and the Eagles offense are set to face one of the best passing defenses in the league in the Chargers, who have only given up 168 yards through the air per game (No. 2 in the NFL).

    The Eagles cannot afford to fall behind the sticks in this game due to penalties or negative plays. The Chargers will make them pay — they have 16 sacks on third down this season, which is tied for the third most in the league. The Eagles, conversely, have converted just 34.5% of their third downs, which ranks 28th.

    On one hand, I find it hard to believe that this Eagles team, with all of its talent, will lose three straight games for the first time since 2023. On the other, these matchups aren’t exactly favorable for the Eagles, even with an injured Herbert factored into the equation.

    Prediction: Chargers 27, Eagles 24

    Matt Breen

    Omarion Hampton is trending to play Monday night, giving the Chargers a two-headed rushing attack against the Eagles. Does that remind you of anything? The Eagles failed to stop the run on Black Friday as Swift and Monangai combined for 255 yards. Expect the Chargers to attack the same way, especially as Herbert is expected to play a week after surgery on his nonthrowing hand. Hampton and Kimani Vidal, who has been excellent since Hampton went on injured reserve, will be even more of a challenge thanks to the absence of Carter.

    Just one team has gained more than 100 yards on the ground against the Chargers over the last five weeks so it’s hard to see this being the week that the Eagles finally get Saquon Barkley going. The best route to beat them could be through the air as Geno Smith had his highest completion percentage (78.3) of the season last week but the Chargers still won by 17. But it’s hard to express much confidence in the Birds’ aerial attack after Black Friday. This seems like a tough spot.

    Prediction: Chargers 27, Eagles 17

  • With Jalen Carter out, the Eagles’ defense faces an ‘accountability’ test at a critical juncture

    With Jalen Carter out, the Eagles’ defense faces an ‘accountability’ test at a critical juncture

    Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter will miss Monday’s game in Los Angeles and be considered week to week after undergoing a procedure on both of his shoulders, a source confirmed to The Inquirer on Thursday.

    ESPN was first to report the news on Carter, who has been dealing with a shoulder injury since the beginning of training camp. It has bothered him at times during a season that has featured a slight decline in production.

    “He does have a shoulder issue,” defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said Wednesday. “He has been playing with it.”

    Marcus Epps’ return, Jalen Carter’s injury could be factors for Vic Fangio’s defense vs. Chargers

    The Eagles were dominated by the Chicago Bears’ rushing attack Friday, and Carter was ineffective at times. He was removed from the field on some first- and second-down plays.

    “There was some runs out there I got drove back or I wasn’t making an effect on the play,” he said.

    “It’s my problems to deal with. I ain’t fitting to tell y’all what I’m going through.”

    Apparently the shoulder injury reached a breaking point.

    Jalen Carter has been dealing with a shoulder injury since training camp.

    In October, Carter described the injury as “a little serious, but I’m working through it, fighting through it.” That came after a game at Tampa Bay in which he was forced to the sidelines for some defensive snaps because of the injury.

    “Everybody has injuries, depending on if it’s small or if it’s big, but when the right time comes, if I need to stop and take a little break to work more on my shoulder, that time is going to come,” Carter said.

    Two months later, his words were proven true.

    “It’s always hard when you don’t feel 100% or not healthy,” defensive tackle Moro Ojomo said. “I think that it’s most important to get your body right. This is a sport that wears and tears on you, so that was kind of the whole idea.”

    It does not appear that Carter is heading toward a stint on injured reserve, which would force him to miss at least four games. The Eagles play the Chargers on the road Monday before returning home for a game vs. the Las Vegas Raiders on Dec. 14. The Eagles’ priority probably will be getting Carter as healthy as possible before the postseason begins, but they’re still trying to clinch a trip to the playoffs.

    “I think he should get right and get his body feeling as good as possible, and we’re going to be ready when he gets back,” Ojomo said.

    Carter had a breakout 2024 season and emerged as one of the better interior defensive linemen in the NFL. He was selected to his first Pro Bowl and was named second-team All-Pro.

    Fangio was critical of the shape Carter was in earlier this season, but Carter had worked his way back to a large workload after playing more snaps last season than any other interior defensive lineman. Carter has missed two games this season. He was ejected before the first snap of the Eagles’ Week 1 game vs. Dallas after spitting at Dak Prescott, and he missed a Week 6 loss to the New York Giants with a heel injury.

    While his pressure rate has dropped (8.9% to 7.8%, according to Next Gen Stats) and he has at times not been as effective against the run, Carter’s presence is still a key factor for the Eagles. They are a much better defense with him on the field than with him off.

    With Carter out, expect to see rookie defensive tackle Ty Robinson, who has at times been a healthy scratch, in the rotation for depth. Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo, and Byron Young likely will see an uptick in snaps. The Eagles could also use Brandon Graham on the interior, especially on obvious passing downs.

    Ojomo, who is playing nearly 65% of the snaps on defense, said he was expecting to see more time on the field with Carter out. Since Carter likes to line up on the left side of the ball, Ojomo said there are “little nuances” and different things to study to prepare for a bit of a change.

    The Eagles entered the 2025 season with limited depth on the interior after losing Milton Williams to free agency. They drafted Robinson to backfill, but he has played just 35 snaps. Gabe Hall made the initial 53-man roster after spending last season on the practice squad, but he has played 13 snaps and has spent most of the 2025 season back on the practice squad.

    The Eagles also in August traded Thomas Booker, who could have been a rotational piece, to the Raiders for cornerback Jakorian Bennett, who has been used sparingly and also missed time because of an injury.

    The depth will be tested greatly with Carter out. Davis and Ojomo have made improvements, but Young hasn’t been consistently effective when he’s on the field.

    The Bears racked up 281 rushing yards on the Eagles last Friday. That happened partially because of Carter’s weakened shoulder, but there were other factors. Ojomo said the mistakes were seen on film.

    “As a defense, we just have to have accountability,” he said. “Everybody look themselves in the mirror and realize, ‘OK, we have to be more accountable. I’m not going to mess up here, take this chance here,’ and get back to the defense we know we can play.”

    That won’t be as simple without Carter, and it comes at a critical juncture in the Eagles’ season.

  • Jordan Mailata named Eagles’ 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year

    Jordan Mailata named Eagles’ 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year

    Left tackle Jordan Mailata is the Eagles’ 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee, the team announced Thursday.

    The award recognizes players who excel on the field and make an impact off it. Mailata is one of 32 nominees (one from each team). The winner will be announced during the NFL Honors ceremony on Feb. 5 during Super Bowl week in the San Francisco area.

    Since the award was established in 1970, three Eagles have won it: Harold Carmichael in 1980, Troy Vincent in 2002, and Chris Long in 2018.

    “Jordan Mailata’s recognition as a Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year club winner is truly well deserved and speaks to his profound impact, both on and off the field,” Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said in a news release. “One of the highest honors bestowed upon players in the National Football League, this award celebrates those who proudly represent their teams with class and dignity — all in the name of the great Walter Payton. We congratulate Jordan and thank him for always being a person of high character who leads with kindness, compassion, and integrity.”

    The team also revealed how it informed Mailata of the honor earlier this week:

    Mailata is a converted rugby player from Australia who was a seventh-round pick by the Eagles in 2018 and has developed into a reliable long-term starter at left tackle. Besides his run of success on the field, Mailata, a second-team All-Pro selection in 2024, has been involved in multiple charitable endeavors. Mailata and his wife, Niki, were honored at the Philadelphia Children’s Alliance’s Bear Affair this year for their ongoing support.

    Mailata also supports the American Association for Cancer Research and has been involved in the Eagles Autism Foundation. Additionally, his “Jeff Stoutland University” vignette on Sunday Night Football that went viral in 2022 inspired the creation of an apparel line that has raised more than $200,000 for the foundation.

    Mailata also lent his singing chops to Christmas albums with Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson that have raised more than $10 million for local charities. Last year, the trio organized Operation Snowball, a project aimed at providing a gift to every student in the Philadelphia public school system thanks to funds raised by the singing group’s third album.

    The charitable beneficiary of each team’s WPMOY nominee will receive $40,000, and the nonprofit chosen by the national winner will receive $250,000. All donations are courtesy of the NFL Foundation and the Nationwide Foundation.

    Mailata will wear a Man of the Year decal on his helmet for the rest of the season.

  • Kevin Willard may soon have his Massimino moment at Villanova, but does this Big 5 format make sense for all?

    Kevin Willard may soon have his Massimino moment at Villanova, but does this Big 5 format make sense for all?

    In 1991, a Villanova coach whose team had risen to national prominence was vilified for killing the Big 5 when the association of Philadelphia’s Division I hoops programs moved away from its round-robin format to a scaled-down version.

    Thirty-five years later, new Villanova coach Kevin Willard may soon face his Rollie Massimino moment.

    “It’s not going to go away,” Willard said of the Big 5 in an interview over the summer. “I think there’s ways to make things better.

    “I want to go through it and figure out what’s best for it.”

    On Saturday, Villanova will play for a Big 5 Classic championship vs. Penn. But what’s best for Villanova probably isn’t what’s best for the other five schools, and what’s best for Penn, St. Joseph’s, or Temple might not be what’s best for La Salle or Drexel.

    The steady hands of Acaden Lewis guide Villanova past Temple and into the Big 5 title game

    To be sure, the sport has changed greatly since 1991. The gap between Villanova and the other local programs has not just grown, it’s never been greater — with Jay Wright’s run of dominance and, more relevantly, the implementation of a payment structure in college sports. Villanova is the only Big 5 school in a power conference with a major television deal and probably can afford to spend more money on its men’s basketball roster than the other five Big 5 programs combined. It probably will be a 15-point favorite over Penn on Saturday in the title game.

    The money is at the heart of all of this. Forget your grandfather’s Big 5; this isn’t even your older brother’s Big 5. There are myriad reasons why the rivalries themselves aren’t the same, and they have been covered ad nauseam over the years: Young people don’t attend college basketball games the way they used to, the teams haven’t been very good, the transfer portal era has created a culture of mercenaries who travel from school to school year after year, and so on.

    Fran Dunphy, the man they call “Mr. Big 5,″ who still watches plenty of basketball in his retirement, had an entire row to himself at Glaser Arena for a large part of the La Salle home game vs. Villanova last month. The Palestra has been removed from the equation almost entirely. The Villanova-St. Joe’s rivalry won’t happen this season for the first time in nearly 30 years. All of that is to say things change and nothing lasts forever.

    But the financial component of it is why the current format of the Big 5 in its nascent stages — in which the six teams are divided into two rotating pods before playing two pool games to determine which teams match up in first-, third-, and fifth-place games during the Big 5 Classic tripleheader — seems unlikely to last very long.

    The House v. NCAA settlement that resulted in schools directly paying players has only increased the need for financial diligence.

    Players warm up before the start of the Big 5 Classic games on Dec. 7, 2024.

    Villanova has to be considering the merits of keeping together an aging tradition vs. the cost of doing so, and it shouldn’t be alone in its considerations.

    Instead of taking a bus ride to Olney to play at La Salle and winning by 15 in a sleepy building, wouldn’t Villanova have been better off having a home game, even if that means spending something like $100,000 to have a lesser opponent come to Finneran Pavilion? Maybe it’s not a buy-game and is instead another opportunity to host a team like Pittsburgh, which Villanova will do on Dec. 13.

    Regardless of the replacement opponent, the current format means Villanova could be missing out on essentially two home games. One is the automatic road game from the two pod-play contests, the other is the Big 5 Classic itself, which divvies the pot from ticket sales seven ways between the six schools and the building.

    That’s hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue Villanova isn’t bringing in. Sure, your reaction to that can be “boo-hoo,” but that could be the salary of a rotational player floating away for the sake of nostalgia.

    Penn and La Salle played a Palestra classic, even though it wasn’t a Big 5 game

    “When you play 20 conference games, playing an [Atlantic 10] road game every year is really difficult,” Willard said in June. “You’re also taking away a home game when revenue has become extremely important.”

    Which brings us to the other element of this, and why Villanova isn’t alone, even if the Main Line school again will be vilified publicly for whatever happens next to the Big 5 (if its competition, for example, ends up being something like a one-day-only event with rotating matchups).

    Let’s take Drexel or La Salle, for example. What if instead of playing two of these three Big 5 games, those schools got $100,000 to fly to a high-major program? A few hundred thousand may be a rotational player at Villanova, but that’s a starter or two at either of the aforementioned schools.

    It may be reductive to view all of this through that lens, but that’s the reality for these schools. Money is all that matters, and the toothpaste is out of the tube in that regard. There will be no going back, which means traditions, even new takes on them, can’t last forever.

    The new Big 5 format breathed some life into one that was getting stale, but it was agreed upon before the House settlement. The six athletic directors soon will have to put their heads together and figure out the best path forward.

    “Scheduling is as important as anything in college sports,” Willard said. “Scheduling is everything.”

    Massimino felt something similar in the early ’90s, too. That much hasn’t changed, but the financial implications certainly have.

  • Numbers and trends that could impact Monday’s Eagles-Chargers game in Los Angeles

    Numbers and trends that could impact Monday’s Eagles-Chargers game in Los Angeles

    The Eagles are off to the Los Angeles area for the third consecutive season, although this time they’ll face the Chargers and not the Rams at SoFi Stadium, a building they could have to travel to again in the playoffs if they want to reach another Super Bowl.

    The 8-4 Eagles have lost their last two games, while the 8-4 Chargers have won four of five.

    Here are some key numbers and trends from the Chargers that could play into Monday’s result in California:

    281

    Eagles fans probably don’t need a reminder, but it’s worth repeating just how badly the Eagles were beaten up by Chicago’s running game Friday to the tune of 281 yards.

    Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said he “didn’t do a good enough job of preparing our squad for the quality and the diversity of their run game” and that the defense needed to play better technique and needed to be coached better.

    Well, here comes a Chargers offense that just got 126 yards on 25 carries from Kimani Vidal in a 31-14 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13. The Chargers limped into their bye week after a 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, but they emerged from the week off with a dominant running game that could give the Eagles fits if they don’t make fixes fast.

    Vidal, according to Next Gen Stats, forced a career-high 12 missed tackles. The Chargers chose to run away from Maxx Crosby’s side of the field and got 80 yards and a touchdown on nine carries outside the left tackle, according to Next Gen.

    Marcus Epps’ return, Jalen Carter’s injury could be factors for Vic Fangio’s defense vs. Chargers

    The Eagles should be prepared for the Chargers to try to attack whatever weakness they can find up front. Right now, that might mean running at Jalen Carter, who is dealing with a shoulder injury and got pushed around at times Friday.

    “They’ve rushed for 200 yards on two teams this year,” said Fangio, who added that Chargers offensive coordinator Greg Roman has “always done a good job running the ball schematically.”

    “They have a big tight end, big fullback, pretty big O-line, good backs. They run it very, very [well],” Fangio said.

    Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter has been slowed by double teams and a shoulder injury.

    26.9%

    The good news for the Eagles is that they could be either dealing with a limited Justin Herbert or could face backup quarterback Trey Lance.

    Herbert underwent surgery on his left hand Monday, and his status for the game remains unclear. Fangio said the Eagles will prepare for both quarterbacks and know that if Herbert goes, he’ll be playing a lot out of the shotgun and pistol sets rather than under center.

    Regardless of who plays, the Chargers did a much better job protecting Herbert last week. He faced a pressure rate of just 26.9%, according to Next Gen, his second-lowest rate of the season. Herbert, who has been dealing with a banged-up offensive line, entered Week 13 facing pressure on 42.7% of his dropbacks in 2025, the highest of any quarterback this year with 375 dropbacks.

    He completed 15 of 20 passes for 151 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

    The Raiders have one of the lowest pressure rates (26.9%) in the NFL. The Eagles pressure the quarterback at a 34.3% clip and should be able to find some more success getting after Herbert.

    An alternate history of 2023, and why the Eagles are preaching the right message

    36.8%

    The Eagles were torched by the Bears on third down last week. Chicago converted 10 of its 17 third downs. It’s an area in which the Eagles have struggled at times in 2025.

    Against the Chargers, they should at least know where to focus their attention most. No player on the Chargers gets targeted more on third down than Keenan Allen, who entered Week 13 with a 36.8% target share on third downs, according to Next Gen. Allen, who has had a resurgence in his return to the Chargers, entered Week 13 with a league-leading 22 receptions on 35 targets on third down, good for 259 yards and a touchdown. His 20 first downs on third down also led the NFL.

    It will be interesting to see how the Eagles defend the Chargers’ top two targets, Allen and Ladd McConkey, who both align inside and out. McConkey is in the slot 62.5% of the time, according to Pro Football Focus, while Allen is inside just 35.5% of the time. Expect Quinyon Mitchell to see a lot of Allen while McConkey will likely be matched up frequently with Cooper DeJean.

    The Eagles could have the advantage there, considering how elite Mitchell has been. Mitchell is first in the NFL in catch rate allowed (41.9%) and second in tight windows forced (40.5%).

    Stopping the run will be key because getting the Chargers into obvious passing situations likely will play into the Eagles’ hands.

  • The steady hands of Acaden Lewis guide Villanova past Temple and into the Big 5 title game

    The steady hands of Acaden Lewis guide Villanova past Temple and into the Big 5 title game

    It took 2½ minutes for Acaden Lewis to, for all intents and purposes, end a Villanova–Temple game Monday night at Finneran Pavilion that mostly had been a sloppy rock fight for the first 25 minutes.

    The Villanova freshman, in foul trouble for the bulk of the first half, hadn’t yet made his mark on a game that was sending the winner to the Big 5 Classic championship game.

    In a flash, that changed. The Wildcats, in the third year of the current Big 5 Classic format, finally will play for a championship in a City Series the program had long dominated. They beat Temple, 74-56, largely because of Lewis’ steady hand and a short sequence that changed the game.

    Penn and La Salle played a Palestra classic, even though it wasn’t a Big 5 game

    First, Lewis got to the basket and finished a layup through contact. His three-point play cut a four-point Temple lead to one with 15 minutes remaining. Then he stripped Temple’s Gavin Griffiths and fed Devin Askew for a three-pointer.

    After a Temple miss, Villanova’s Duke Brennan, the nation’s leading rebounder, grabbed one of his game-high eight rebounds and found Lewis, who got the ball up court quickly and into the hands of Tyler Perkins, who hit one of his game-high five three-pointers en route to his 19-point night.

    Timeout Temple. Tide turned. Lewis got a hockey assist on the next Villanova possession, then grabbed the ensuing Temple miss, brought the ball up the court, and found Brennan rolling to the rim for two easy points. Villanova’s lead was only six with 12 minutes, 20 seconds to play, but Lewis was rolling, and it was only a matter of time before the game got out of Temple’s reach.

    Tyler Perkins led Villanova with 19 points against Temple on Monday night.

    Lewis finished with 12 points on 4-for-8 shooting to go with eight assists, five rebounds, and two steals. He played 24 minutes, was a plus-25, and didn’t turn the ball over.

    Monday’s stat line came on the heels of Lewis’ 20-point outburst in Villanova’s win over Old Dominion last week. He has averaged 6.4 assists over Villanova’s last five games.

    Lewis, a top-35 recruit in the 2025 class, was benched in Villanova’s season-opening loss to nationally ranked Brigham Young. His decision-making and defense in his college debut weren’t good enough. But he has responded over the last four weeks with maturity and poise.

    “He’s been playing at an extremely high level ever since the BYU game, and I think he just keeps getting a little bit more comfortable with guys out there and what he’s doing,” Villanova coach Kevin Willard said. “He’s been great.”

    Freshman Acaden Lewis will get the keys for Kevin Willard and Villanova right away

    Lewis said he’s feeling more comfortable. He sees it in his ability to take care of the ball and not turn it over. He had four turnovers apiece in victories over Sacred Heart and Duquesne, but followed those outings up with two turnovers vs. La Salle, one vs. Old Dominion, and zero Monday night vs. Temple. His defense has improved, too.

    “Man, is he good,” Temple coach Adam Fisher said. “I got to watch him in high school and stuff. He’s just so smooth as a freshman, and I think you see Coach Willard’s teams through the years, his personnel gets better. So I think what you’re seeing from Lewis right now, and the Lewis come February and March is going to be even better.

    “And right now, he’s pretty freakin’ good. All five guys got to guard him, his ability to pick you apart. He can guard, he’s got great length, and he disrupts the game.”

    Even if he’s not realizing it in the moment.

    “I honestly have no clue,” Lewis said when asked about the impact of the aforementioned sequence that changed the game. “I kind of got lost in the game.”

    Acaden Lewis (right) fueled a Villanova run that helped put Monday’s game against Temple on ice.

    Villanova, with Lewis on the bench for the final 10 minutes of the first half, looked lost offensively at times. Temple’s trio of guards — Aiden Tobiason, Derrian Ford, and Jordan Mason — who combined for 41 of Temple’s 56 points, did a good job disrupting Villanova’s flow. But Villanova finally put together an extended stretch of good defensive play, an area that has been of concern to Willard lately.

    Willard said he was happy at halftime despite Villanova leading by just one, 29-28. The Wildcats outscored the Owls, 45-28, in the second half. They outrebounded Temple (4-4), 43-24, overall.

    Villanova had nine turnovers in the first 21 minutes of the game, but not another the rest of the way largely because of Lewis, who drained a three-pointer for good measure (or practice) after the final horn sounded.

    The Wildcats are 6-1 and have KenPom’s No. 1 team, Michigan (7-0), which is ranked No. 3 in the Associated Press poll, on Tuesday. It will be a litmus test type of game for a team that currently has no real signature win on its resumé.

    First up, though, is a date Saturday with Penn (5-3) in the championship of the Big 5 Classic.

    “Where we’re trying to get this program back to, you got to learn how to win games that matter,” Willard said. “To play Penn for the Big 5 championship … learning how to win championships, especially in today’s world where you have 13 guys who are all brand-new, it’s a good opportunity for us to learn and see what it’s all about.”

    Big 5 Classic matchups set

    Fifth-place game: Drexel vs. La Salle, 2 p.m.

    Third-place game: St. Joseph’s vs. Temple, 4:30 p.m.

    Championship: Villanova vs. Penn, 7 p.m.