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  • Nick Sirianni did the smart thing by resting his starters. Now the Eagles have to show he was right.

    Nick Sirianni did the smart thing by resting his starters. Now the Eagles have to show he was right.

    OK, let’s play this out. Let’s go back to the third quarter of the Eagles’ 24-17 loss Sunday to the Washington Commanders, to a first-down completion for 6 yards from backup quarterback Tanner McKee to Grant Calcaterra, the team’s second tight end — an innocent enough play. Let’s go back to Washington safety Jeremy Reaves grabbing Calcaterra from behind and dragging him down in an illegal (and yet unpenalized) hip-drop tackle. Let’s go back to Calcaterra limping off the field then into the locker room, his right knee and ankle injured so badly that he couldn’t return to the game.

    Now, let’s pretend that coach Nick Sirianni had made a different decision ahead of Sunday’s results: the Eagles’ loss, the Chicago Bears’ loss to the Detroit Lions, the Eagles’ ending up with the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs when they could have had the No. 2 seed. Let’s pretend Sirianni had played all the team’s starters instead. Hell, let’s pretend that, because all their starters played, the Eagles beat the Commanders.

    David Murphy: Eagles’ first playoff loss was to karma. Next up: the 49ers.

    And let’s pretend that it wasn’t Calcaterra who suffered those injuries. Let’s pretend it was Dallas Goedert.

    Would the victory have been worth it? Would it?

    Let’s pretend some more. Let’s pretend that it wasn’t Brett Toth who started at left guard Sunday … and who suffered a concussion in the second half and, like Calcaterra, left the game. Let’s pretend it was the Eagles’ usual starting left guard. Let’s pretend it was Landon Dickerson.

    Perhaps no Goedert. Perhaps no Dickerson. Perhaps another vital player who might have ended up unavailable, or at least damaged, for next Sunday’s wild-card game against the 49ers.

    Would the victory and the No. 2 seed have been worth it then? Would it?

    On the crucial question ahead of Sunday for the Eagles, the easiest position to take was, Play the starters. It required no calibration of whether a theoretically weaker opponent in the first round (the Green Bay Packers) and a potential extra home game in the divisional round was better for the Eagles than a week of rest for their top guys. It required none of the responsibility that Sirianni bore: to take the pulse of the locker room, to understand where his players stood on the matter, and act accordingly. It required nothing other than the simplest of calculations, one that could be drawn without any context. You play to get the higher seed. End of story.

    But that context matters, and it includes some relevant recent history. It’s no coincidence that each of the two teams that have repeated as Super Bowl winners in the last quarter-century — Tom Brady and the 2003-04 New England Patriots, Patrick Mahomes and the 2022-23 Kansas City Chiefs — had an all-time great at quarterback. That measure of greatness at the most important position in sports is the closest thing that an NFL team can have to a shortcut to a Super Bowl. Remember: The Eagles played four playoff games last season in reaching and winning Super Bowl LIX, and a team attempting to win back-to-back championships needs every hour of rest and recovery it can get. It’s the price of success, sure, but an NFL season that’s 24% longer than a regular 17-game campaign — and an offseason that’s 24% shorter — does exact a toll.

    “I don’t know whether people think about it, but it does, a hundred percent,” defensive tackle Moro Ojomo said. “You think about the Niners when they went to the Bowl in ’23 — they just completely dropped [the following season]. The Eagles went to the Bowl [in 2022]; after that year, they had a slump at the end of the season. It’s insanely hard, what the Chiefs have done and what we’re trying to get done. You play a lot of football, and you want to keep on going.

    Marcus Hayes: Tanner McKee is exactly what the Eagles need … in a backup quarterback

    “You get this late in a season, and you get bruised up and banged up, and you don’t know how much it helps a guy who’s been dealing with a shoulder [injury] to have a week off. That goes a long way. Now that guy’s coming into the playoffs a little fresher. So if you’re a running back, maybe instead of going for 85 yards you go for 115. That’s the goal, to give yourself any advantage you can get.”

    The Eagles cost themselves that advantage as recently as 2023, when Sirianni suited up his starters for the season finale in East Rutherford, N.J., just for the sake of trying to snap the team out of a terrible slump. What happened was the true worst-case scenario in such situations: A.J. Brown injured his knee and missed the following week’s wild-card game against Tampa Bay. Jalen Hurts dislocated his finger. And the Eagles lost to the Giants.

    The Eagles decided not to rest starters in the 2023 season finale and lost A.J. Brown for the playoffs that year.

    So Sirianni went the other way Sunday, effectively manufacturing a bye week for his best players. They had one in 2022-23, when they were the conference’s No. 1 seed, and they had one last year, when Sirianni played his backups against the Giants in Week 18.

    “Every year is different,” Sirianni said. “Every year that you go through it, you’re judging this team. Of course you think back to that. My mindset was more all the good things that have happened as we’ve rested guys. I didn’t really think too much about the negatives of it.”

    The positives outweighed them anyway. Do the Eagles have a harder road back to the Super Bowl now? Maybe, but not necessarily. They got some rest and eliminated any risk that they’d be shorthanded to a significant degree next Sunday. The defending champs let everything play out, and now they really get to take their chances, to show that being healthy and healed up is a bigger advantage than anything they might have gained from treating Sunday’s game like their season depended on it.

  • Nick Sirianni didn’t rest Kevin Patullo and the Eagles offense still looked inadequate

    Nick Sirianni didn’t rest Kevin Patullo and the Eagles offense still looked inadequate

    If there was an argument for Nick Sirianni playing his starters against the Commanders on Sunday, it was using the season finale as an opportunity to give the Eagles offense some momentum heading into the postseason.

    The reasoning wasn’t exactly strong. But it had more validity than trying to jump up to the No. 2 seed (although starting Jalen Hurts & Co. could have satisfied both objectives).

    Sirianni, of course, opted to sit his quarterback and most starters on both sides of the ball. The rest may benefit the Eagles against the 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs. As the coach said before and after a 24-17 loss to Washington, the one thing he could control was how he utilized his personnel.

    It was a sound rationalization. Some will question the decision after a Bears loss to the Lions could have pitted the Eagles against the Packers and given them a potential home game at Lincoln Financial Field in the divisional round.

    Either way, three games will stand between the team returning to the Super Bowl. And repeating as champion is unlikely if the offense continues to function as it has for most of the season. An inadequate Washington defense could have offered the chance to, at least, reverse a pitiful second half at the Bills last week.

    “We treat every practice like we’re using that as momentum, and had a good week of practice with the guys and good individual work to sharpen our skills,” Sirianni said. “Again, this is what I felt was best for us, was to be rested and healthy going into the playoffs. Everything else was considered, obviously.”

    It would be extreme to use the offense’s outing vs. the Commanders as a harbinger of how it will perform against San Francisco at the Linc. Two starters played briefly — wide receiver DeVonta Smith and right guard Tyler Steen — and several rotational skill position backups logged regulars’ snaps.

    Eagles’ first playoff loss was to karma. Next up: the 49ers.

    There was some positive from quarterback Tanner McKee, running back Tank Bigsby and various reserves who were given more playing time. There was ultimately more bad than good, but it was hard to come to conclusions about individual players considering the circumstances.

    And the same could be said about coordinator Kevin Patullo. He had a decent opening half, and dialed up concepts that beat various schemes on occasion. The offense looked a little different with McKee and some new faces. The operation seemed to move at a quicker pace.

    But Patullo was the one main cog in the offense who didn’t get the week off, and his game plan and play-calling felt like essentially more of the same. A better evaluation can’t be made until after a film review, but in the macro it felt like there wasn’t enough of Bigsby and the running game, and in the micro there were questionable decisions.

    The Eagles have been among the best offenses in the red zone all season. It’s where Patullo has shined the most. McKee’s 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Grant Calcaterra in the second quarter on a seam route was the perfect call against a quarters zone.

    But when the Eagles advanced to the Washington 6-yard-line on their ensuing possession with balanced play-calling, Patullo had McKee throw out of the shotgun on third- and fourth-and-2. Maybe Sirianni didn’t inform his assistant that he was planning on gambling on fourth down, but a run on third down would have made more sense.

    And having McKee with an empty backfield made it easier on the Commanders. Unlike with Hurts, a quarterback draw or scramble in that situation was improbable.

    A series later, a Jalyx Hunt interception gave the Eagles the ball at Washington’s 22-yard-line. McKee hooked up with receiver Darius Cooper for a 17-yard toss over the middle, but the rookie spun the ball after his catch and was flagged for taunting.

    The Eagles still had the ball at the 20-yard line, but after an incomplete pass and a Bigsby carry for no gain, McKee threw a bad interception.

    “Like any game, he’s going to want some plays back, but I thought he did a lot of good things and we were able to move the ball,” Sirianni said of McKee. “Obviously, we didn’t finish a couple times in the red zone for different reasons.”

    That didn’t count as a red zone possession. It’s hard to fault Patullo for Cooper and McKee’s mistakes on that drive.

    The Eagles turned another fortuitous turnover into points in the third quarter. Patullo used a heavy dose of under-center runs to punch Bigsby into the end zone for a 14-10 lead. There was more shotgun on the next series that ended with a Jake Elliott 39-yard field goal.

    But after Washington knotted the score at 17 in the fourth quarter, Patullo had McKee drop back to pass on all three downs before punting. It was the Eagles’ lone three-and-out of the game — an improvement upon their NFL-worst rate.

    The inability to capitalize on Bigsby’s tough running and playmaking — his 31-yard catch was the Eagles’ longest of the game — was dubious, though. He didn’t get a single touch in the fourth quarter, partly because backup running back Will Shipley was on the field with the offense in pass mode.

    But having McKee drop back on 15 straight plays on the final three possessions, behind a second-unit offensive line, wasn’t ideal. He completed just 5 of 14 passes for 40 yards and was sacked once on those drops. His lack of mobility was glaring whenever he was pressured.

    Tanner McKee had some nice moments but his mobility was an issue, as was his supporting cast.

    There were other differences between McKee and Hurts, with some of them suggestive of areas in which the latter struggles. The Eagles didn’t often snap the ball as late into the play clock as they do with Hurts at quarterback.

    On the first seven possessions, McKee completed 16 of 25 passes for 201 yards. The ball often went where it should go based on the progression read vs. a certain coverage.

    “I kind of have a philosophy that the defense is going to tell you where to throw the ball,” McKee said.

    He wasn’t as good out of structure. McKee also missed some open receivers, the most egregious coming when he overshot Kylen Granson on fourth down late in the game. But he often had little time with rookie tackle Cameron Williams, for instance, having never previously played in an NFL game.

    “When you don’t have your starting offensive line and you’ve got to have lots of different thumps on the D-ends and chip blocks, rather than get everybody out in the route scheme,” Eagles receiver Britain Covey said, “things like that make a huge difference.”

    The Eagles ran more from under center (53%) than the shotgun (47%). But McKee didn’t throw off play action as much as expected. He dropped back from under center only five times and completed 2 of 3 passes for 37 yards. He was also sacked and scrambled for 2 yards on those plays.

    DeVonta Smith’s brief cameo was helpful for the Eagles, but their reserves ultimately could not bridge the talent gap.

    McKee lost his best option when Smith was pulled after eclipsing 1,000 yards receiving for the season. He hit the receiver on 3 of 4 targets for 52 yards. Sirianni said he limited Smith’s routes to protect him, but the Eagles clearly drew up passes in which he was a primary read.

    “You have things drawn up for certain guys and certain things,” Smith said, “but, ultimately, it’s based on what the coverage is.”

    It stands to reason why Patullo, Hurts and the offense can’t have more planned success with their designs. The sample was small and the Commanders, of course, didn’t offer the best resistance. But that might have been enough justification for playing the starters.

    Sirianni tried something similar two years ago at the Giants and it blew up in his face. The Eagles had more at stake with the NFC East still on the line, but the offense was stagnant against another subpar defense and Hurts and receiver A.J. Brown also got hurt.

    Eagles react to facing the San Francisco 49ers in playoffs: ‘It’s going to be good on good’

    The Eagles have a much better defense than they did in 2024. Parity is the best way to describe the NFC playoff picture. Each team is flawed. The Eagles’ Achilles’ heel is their offense. Resting the starters — and probably playing them, as well — was unlikely to cure that condition.

    “We’ll be all right,” Smith said. “We know what we’ve got to do. We know what’s at stake. It’s win or go home. It’s no time for the mistakes, ‘We’ll get it next time.’ You’ve got to get it this time.”

    But will the Eagles offense finally get it together when it counts?

  • NFL playoffs: Full wild-card schedule; Birds to face 49ers; last team punches postseason ticket

    NFL playoffs: Full wild-card schedule; Birds to face 49ers; last team punches postseason ticket

    The Eagles finally know which team they’ll face next weekend during the wild-card round of the playoffs.

    Following their 24-17 loss to the Washington Commanders Sunday, the Eagles will enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and host the San Francisco 49ers at the Linc during the first round of the playoffs.

    The game is scheduled for Sunday at 4:30 p.m. on Fox.

    The Eagles missed out on a chance to land the No. 2 seed, which they had an opportunity to snag after the Detroit Lions defeated the Chicago Bears Sunday.

    The final playoff spot was claimed in dramatic fashion Sunday night, with the Pittsburgh Steelers edging out the Baltimore Ravens in a wild fourth-quarter that saw three lead changes. As a result, the Steelers win the AFC North and will host the Houston Texans in the wild-card round.

    Despite losing Saturday night, the Carolina Panthers were crowned NFC South champions Sunday, thanks to the Atlanta Falcons’ win against the New Orleans Saints.

    The Jacksonville Jaguars won the AFC South by defeating the Tennessee Titans Sunday, but missed out on landing the No. 1 seed, which went to the Denver Broncos for the first time since 2015, when they won Super Bowl 50.

    The Seattle Seahawks claimed the NFC West title and the No. 1 seed with their 13-3 win against the San Francisco 49ers Saturday night.

    Which team will the Eagles play in the playoffs?

    Brock Purdy and the 49ers will face the Eagles at the Linc in the wild-card round.

    As the No. 3 seed, the Eagles will host the 49ers in the wild card round.

    The 49ers missed out on winning the NFC West Saturday night, losing to the Seahawks. They dropped down to the No. 6 seed after the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Arizona Cardinals Sunday.

    2026 wild-card playoff schedule

    Here is the full schedule for the wild-card round of the playoffs, which the NFL announced Sunday night:

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    The No. 1 seed Seahawks and No. 1 seed Broncos get byes, and will host the lowest-remaining team during the divisional round of the playoffs.

    NFC playoff picture

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    The Panthers clinched the NFC South Sunday, claiming the NFC’s final playoff spot.

    Despite the Panthers losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Saturday night, the Falcons’ win against the Saints created a three-way tie at 8-7 atop the NFC South. The tiebreaker fell to their head-to-head record, with the Panthers (3-1) edging out the Buccaneers (2-2) and Falcons (1-3).

    Here how the NFC playoffs will look:

    • No. 1 seed: Seahawks
    • No. 2 seed: Bears
    • No. 3 seed: Eagles
    • No. 4 seed: Panthers
    • No. 5 seed: Rams
    • No. 6 seed: 49ers
    • No. 7 seed: Packers

    AFC playoff picture

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    The Broncos claimed the AFC’s No. 1 seed by defeating the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday.

    The win drops the New England Patriots down to the No. 2 seed, with the Jaguars claiming the AFC South and the No. 3 seed.

    The Steelers won the AFC North for the first time since 2020 and enter the playoffs as the No. 4 seed.

    Here how the AFC playoffs will look:

    • No. 1 seed: Broncos
    • No. 2 seed: Patriots
    • No. 3 seed: Jaguars
    • No. 4 seed: Ravens
    • No. 5 seed: Texans
    • No. 6 seed: Bills
    • No. 7 seed: Chargers

    Full 2025 NFL playoff schedule

    • Wild-card round: Saturday, Jan. 10, to Monday, Jan. 12
    • Divisional round: Saturday, Jan. 17, to Sunday, Jan. 18
    • AFC and NFC championship games: Sunday, Jan. 25
    • Super Bowl LX: Sunday, Feb. 8

    Where is this year’s Super Bowl?

    Super Bowl LX (or 60, for those who don’t like Roman numerals) is being held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., home of the San Francisco 49ers. NBC will broadcast this year’s Super Bowl, with Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth on the call.

    Here are the sites announced for future Super Bowls:

    • Super Bowl LXI: Feb. 14., 2027, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif. (ESPN, ABC)
    • Super Bowl LXII: Feb. 2028, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta (CBS)
  • Eagles react to facing the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs: ‘It’s going to be good on good’

    Eagles react to facing the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs: ‘It’s going to be good on good’

    What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the San Francisco 49ers, the Eagles’ first-round opponents in the playoffs?

    “Got to stop their run, Christian McCaffrey,” Brandon Graham said.

    It is where the game plan and film review starts for good reason. McCaffrey was second in the NFL during the regular season in yards from scrimmage with 2,126 (1,202 rushing yards, 924 receiving yards). On Sunday, the sixth-seeded 49ers will bring to Lincoln Financial Field a high-powered offense with McCaffrey as the focal point, and a defense that is nothing like the one that helped San Francisco reach four NFC title games — and two Super Bowls — during a five-season stretch from 2019 to 2023.

    Reactions from the Eagles inside their locker room after they fell, 24-17, to the Washington Commanders in their regular-season finale were pretty similar.

    Graham didn’t know which team the Eagles were playing until reporters told him. He had other things to worry about during the course of Sunday’s game since he dressed and played. But Reed Blankenship and Zack Baun, two defensive starters who had the night off, each expressed a similar mindset: “It doesn’t matter who we play,” Blankenship said. “We’re all excited. A lot of us had a week off and we’re ready to play. I feel like that was the best decision that Coach made and I feel fresh. We don’t know when we’re going to play them, but whatever day it is, [they’ve] got to come over here and come back to Philly.”

    The Eagles and 49ers have some recent history. A mini-rivalry of sorts formed after the Eagles blew out the banged-up 49ers in the NFC title game, 31-7, during their run to the Super Bowl at the end of the 2022 season. The 49ers exacted revenge just over 10 months later in a 42-19 victory that kick-started the Eagles’ miserable collapse to finish the 2023 season.

    Eagles’ first playoff loss was to karma. Next up: the 49ers.

    During that latter game, McCaffrey rushed 17 times for 93 yards and a touchdown and added three catches for 40 yards.

    “Christian McCaffrey is a dog,” Blankenship said. “We played them in ’23 and then obviously in ’22, so I played them twice. They have a really good offensive core and obviously it’s going to be a challenge. It’s the playoffs. Everybody is good. It’s going to be good on good. It’s win or go home, but we’re ready. We’re prepared for that. We’ve been through that.”

    DeVonta Smith said the playoff opener is “just another game, but it’s the playoffs. We don’t want to go home, so everybody’s going to have a little more oomph.”

    The 49ers have been bringing the oomph. They were 6-4 through 10 weeks and then won six consecutive games before falling, 13-3, Saturday night at home to Seattle against one of the best defenses in the NFL. They are 7-2 in games quarterback Brock Purdy has started.

    Brock Purdy has helped lift the 49ers when healthy this season.

    The Eagles will likely be leaning on Saturday’s low-output offensive effort from the 49ers as they prepare for their first postseason matchup. Like top-seeded Seattle, the Eagles have one of the best defenses in the league, and while the Eagles offense has been inconsistent, San Francisco’s strength isn’t its defense. The 49ers gave up 38 points to Chicago on Dec. 28 and needed a red-zone stand to keep their hopes alive for the No. 1 seed. The Eagles, who opened as 3½-point favorites, probably feel their ability to take care of the ball and play good defense is the recipe for a win.

    “[We’ve] just got to be us and bring the energy,” Graham said. “Play fast on defense and put the offense in a great position. It’s going to be [about] field position in that game.

    “I know the 49ers are going to definitely come here and try to get one on our field and [we’ve] got to defend it.”

    Blankenship and Baun both said they felt rested and ready for the postseason run. It was the obvious topic of conversation after the Eagles lost and missed out on a chance to secure the No. 2 seed in the conference. The Eagles chose rest over the possibility of moving up a spot, and Blankenship said he wasn’t going to look back with any regrets.

    Nick Sirianni talked earlier in the week about his decision, and one of the things he pointed to was the Eagles resting their starters in Week 18 last season and entering the postseason healthy and rested.

    Last season’s playoff run ended with a Lombardi Trophy and a parade on Broad Street. Why, despite the ups and downs, might this team have another run in them?

    “I think we’re really ramping it up,” Baun said. “I feel like we’re in a good position as a team, as a collective. Especially as a defense, we’re playing really good football right now.”

    It all starts next weekend.

    “It’s a big game,” Baun said. “It’s the postseason. It’s the playoffs, and this team definitely turns it on in the playoffs.”

  • DeVonta Smith’s milestone, Josh Johnson’s age, and more from the Eagles-Commanders broadcast

    DeVonta Smith’s milestone, Josh Johnson’s age, and more from the Eagles-Commanders broadcast

    The Eagles dropped the final game of the regular season, 24-17, to the Commanders, locking them into the No. 3 seed in the playoffs and a matchup with the 49ers.

    If you were at Lincoln Financial Field for the game, here’s everything you missed on the broadcast of the regular-season finale:

    Mr. Smith goes for 1,000 vs. Washington

    The Birds’ offensive starters sat out Sunday’s game — except for DeVonta Smith (well, also Tyler Steen).

    Eagles grades: Backups don’t exactly inspire confidence in regular season-ending loss to Commanders

    Since Smith went into Sunday’s game just 44 yards shy of a 1,000-yard receiving season, the team wanted to get him on the field to have a chance at hitting that milestone for the third year, play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan said.

    Smith surpassed 1,000 yards on a 27-yard catch to end the first quarter and promptly left the game, and he was all smiles on the sideline with Nick Sirianni.

    Josh Johnson’s age is nothing but a number that is a major storyline

    Commanders third-string quarterback Josh Johnson, who started Sunday, has played for 14 NFL teams since he was first drafted in 2008 — plus stints in the Alliance of American Football and the XFL.

    Eagles fans are most familiar with him after he replaced an injured Brock Purdy in the 2023 NFC championship game in San Francisco, but the 39-year-old made just his 11th career start in Sunday’s season finale.

    CBS listed all of his NFL stops. Johnson has played for five teams at least twice, including Baltimore, San Francisco, Cincinnati, the Jets, and Washington.

    Permission denied

    Reed Blankenship, like most of the other defensive starters, spent the game on the sideline, resting for the playoffs.

    But these Birds love football too much to stay away. After rookie Brandon Johnson got shaken up in the second quarter and left the game, Blankenship, who was suited up, tried to get in the game to replace him.

    The coaches didn’t let him.

    Jalen Hurts was bundled up for some Week 18 rest.

    Cold-weather mode activated for Hurts

    Jalen Hurts, on the other hand, was nowhere close to getting into the game. He was bundled up in a balaclava and a winter hat on the sideline, with only his eyes visible.

    In these freezing temperatures, who could blame him? I bet more than one of you in the stands was sporting a similar look.

    Respect your elders?

    Eagles first-round linebacker Jihaad Campbell grew up a Birds fan in Gloucester Township, N.J., but he almost missed out on the opportunity to play with one of his childhood heroes, Brandon Graham, who famously retired a year ago and then unretired during this season.

    “How funny was it when we asked Jihaad Campbell who some of his favorite Eagles were growing up, and his answer was Brandon Graham?” Ross Tucker, the color analyst for Sunday’s game, said.

    Marcus Hayes: Tanner McKee is exactly what the Eagles need … in a backup quarterback

    “Who’s playing right now!” play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan interrupted.

    “He said, in middle school everybody liked Brandon Graham,” Tucker said.

    Ross Tucker knows the two-deep

    Tucker, who is part of the broadcast team for Eagles preseason games and also hosts a Birds podcast, called Sunday’s game alongside Harlan.

    With most of the Birds starters sitting out the game, there may not have been a man with any network more qualified to share their insights.

    “I’m pretty much the foremost expert on the Eagles backups,” Tucker joked.

    Daily double falls short

    As the Lions-Bears game went down to the wire, Harlan found himself calling two games at once, providing updates on the game in Chicago while also calling the Eagles-Commanders game.

    The Lions hit the game-winning field goal, which could have propelled the Eagles into the second seed, just as Tanner McKee’s pass fell incomplete on fourth down, virtually ending their hopes to win the game.

  • Eagles grades: Backups don’t exactly inspire confidence in loss to Commanders

    Eagles grades: Backups don’t exactly inspire confidence in loss to Commanders

    Instant grades on the Eagles’ performance in their 24-17 loss to the Washington Commanders:

    Quarterback: C-

    Tanner McKee made his second career start with Jalen Hurts and most Eagles starters resting. He played solidly, if not as well as some had hoped. He was efficient in the drop-back passing game when he threw in rhythm. McKee had a few out-of-structure moments but struggled when pressured and often had to throw the ball away. He completed 21 of 40 throws for 241 yards and a touchdown.

    McKee threw a bad interception before the half. He might not have been on the same page as his intended target, Jahan Dotson, but it’s a throw he shouldn’t have attempted. Safety Jeremy Reaves made the easy pick at the Washington 1-yard line.

    McKee threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to tight end Grant Calcaterra to open the scoring. The seam route was the perfect call vs. a quarters zone. He might have flushed himself into pressure on the fourth-down attempt from the Washington 6 late in the second quarter. He missed an open receiver on fourth down late in the game.

    Tanner McKee is exactly what the Eagles need … in a backup quarterback | Marcus Hayes

    Running back: B-

    Tank Bigsby got the start with Saquon Barkley resting. He popped off several decent gains, ran aggressively, and made defenders miss. Bigsby finished with 75 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

    His most explosive moment came as a receiver when he made a crazy move in the open field. Bigsby changed directions after a short pass and picked up 31 yards. As a runner, he made a defender miss on a 13-yard carry to open the game.

    Will Shipley had a pass sail through his hands in the second quarter, but he caught a 12-yard swing pass in the fourth. AJ Dillon played a little and caught a 3-yard pass.

    Eagles running back Tank Bigsby (center) finished with 75 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

    Receiver/tight end: C+

    Wide receiver DeVonta Smith was the lone skill position starter to play in an attempt to get him to 1,000 yards receiving. He accomplished the feat when he pulled in a 27-yard pass late in the first quarter. Smith promptly was pulled from the game after catching 3 of 4 targets for 52 yards. He finished the season with 77 catches for 1,008 yards.

    Receiver A.J. Brown, who eclipsed 1,000 yards last week, and tight end Dallas Goedert (ankle) didn’t play. Jahan Dotson and Darius Cooper logged most of the time at receiver. Dotson finished with three receptions for 40 yards. He caught a 15-yard pass over the middle on McKee’s first attempt after Smith left. Cooper caught three passes for 33 yards. He won a contested pass for a 17-yard gain but was flagged for taunting after the catch.

    Tight end Grant Calcaterra scored the Eagles’ first touchdown when he snagged a 15-yard pass. He squared up Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu on Bigsby’s 11-yard outside run in the third quarter. Calcaterra left in the third quarter with ankle and knee injuries when he was dragged down by Reaves.

    Kylen Granson became the lead tight end when Calcaterra vacated. He caught four passes for 30 yards. Tight end/fullback Cameron Latu had the lead block on Bigsby’s 2-yard touchdown in the third. He did poorly to lead the way on a Bigsby third-and-1 rush in the third quarter. Britain Covey was the third receiver and converted third-and-long with a 9-yard catch in the third quarter. He also had a 12-yard gain on a screen pass.

    Eagles to face 49ers after failing to land No. 2 seed

    Offensive line: D+

    The Eagles’ starting unit, from left to right, was Fred Johnson, Brett Toth, Drew Kendall, Tyler Steen, and Matt Pryor. Starters right tackle Lane Johnson (foot), left guard Landon Dickerson (calf), center Cam Jurgens and left tackle Jordan Mailata didn’t play. The latter two dressed.

    The O-line did fine against Washington’s starting defense. It opened some holes on the ground but didn’t hold up enough in pass protection. McKee had to escape the pocket a bunch of times.

    Steen played just the first two series but had to return when Toth left with a concussion. Rookie Cameron Williams came in at right tackle, and Pryor moved to right guard. He appeared to leave Daron Payne unblocked when he was at tackle on the Eagles’ first drive. The presnap call might have failed to slide protection to Pryor’s side, though, and McKee was sacked.

    Fred Johnson appeared to fare the best of the second-teamers and mostly kept McKee’s blind side clean. Toth also had a decent game. Kendall looks like the real deal, or at least someone the Eagles can further develop next season. Williams, who spent most of his first season on injured reserve, may have a future as well. He had a number of good blocks and displayed a nasty streak when he stood up to Payne after the whistle.

    Defensive line: B-

    With the Eagles lacking in numbers because of their rotation, regulars Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo, Jalyx Hunt, and Nolan Smith started and played throughout. Starters Jalen Carter (hip) and Jaelan Phillips (ankle) were inactive. The D-line was stout vs. the run but struggled to pressure 39-year-old quarterback Josh Johnson.

    Davis read an early third-down screen and jumped in on a stop short of the sticks. Ojomo had a tackle for no gain on a goal-line run in the fourth quarter. Hunt picked up his third interception of the season when he dropped into coverage and dove for an errant pass. Outside linebacker Joshua Uche hurried Johnson on the throw. Hunt did well to string out Deebo Samuel on an end around that picked up just a yard. He recovered Johnson’s muffed snap in the third quarter.

    Defensive tackle Byron Young registered a tackle for loss on a goal-line run attempt in the fourth quarter. He failed to bring down Chris Rodriguez on a third-down run just before the half. Ty Robinson took a poor angle on Rodriguez’s 9-yard carry in the third quarter and later failed to wrap up the running back near the line.

    Veteran Brandon Graham continued to play only a handful of snaps.

    Linebacker: B

    Zack Baun was a healthy scratch. Nakobe Dean (hamstring) was not and was inactive. Jihaad Campbell started alongside Jeremiah Trotter Jr. The former made several plays, but the latter was all over the field. Trotter led the Eagles with 12 tackles and Campbell had 10.

    Trotter notched a tackle of loss on a goal-line run in the first quarter. Trotter was first to arrive to keep a play-action bootleg pass to just a 1-yard gain. In the third quarter, he blitzed and forced Johnson to throw a dirt ball.

    Campbell blitzed on Washington’s first possession and whiffed on the side-stepping Johnson. He deflected a second-quarter pass over the middle that was nearly intercepted. He might have been the guilty party in coverage on tight end John Bates’ fourth-quarter touchdown catch.

    Eagles linebacker Jihaad Campbell tackles Washington Commanders quarterback Josh Johnson short of a first down in the fourth quarter. The South Jersey native finished with 10 tackles.

    Cornerback: D+

    Kelee Ringo and Jakorian Bennett started on the outside with Quinyon Mitchell and Adoree’ Jackson getting a break. Ringo and Bennett committed multiple penalties in coverage.

    Ringo had tight coverage over the top on an overthrown pass into the end zone. Receiver Terry McLaurin caught a 14-yard pass over him on the drive that set up Washington’s 56-yard field goal before the half. Ringo was flagged for holding and pass interference in the second half. He inexplicably let Johnson waltz into the end zone for the game-winning score.

    Bennett committed two first-half penalties: an early hold on McLaurin and pass interference vs. receiver Treylon Burks on a third-down toss into the end zone. Washington scored a touchdown two plays after the second flag. Bennett had another pass interference against McLaurin on a fade into the end zone.

    Michael Carter started in the slot with Cooper DeJean getting the day off. He moved to safety when Brandon Johnson got hurt in the second quarter. Carter was solid in run support and logged nine stops.

    Mac McWilliams jumped into the slot when Carter was forced to move to safety. It was the rookie’s first extended action on defense. He committed pass interference on an underthrown pass to Samuel in the end zone in the fourth quarter.

    Safety: C+

    Sydney Brown and Brandon Johnson started in place of the resting Reed Blankenship and the injured Marcus Epps (concussion). Brown made a stop after a short pass into the flat in the second quarter. A play later, he appeared to get too deep on a 25-yard third-down completion to McLaurin.

    Johnson bit on a screen fake and a slanting McLaurin caught a 13-yard pass early on, and he failed to wrap up Josh Johnson on a 13-yard draw play later in the drive. He left with an ankle injury and was replaced by Carter.

    Eagles kicker Jake Elliott connected on a 39-yard field goal on Sunday vs. the Washington Commanders.

    Special teams: B

    Kicker Jake Elliott made both extra points and a 39-yard field goal. Punter Braden Mann had an uncharacteristic meh day. He averaged 38 net yards on three boots. Ringo had a strong tackle that kept a return to just 2 yards after a low Mann punt in the third quarter.

    Shipley averaged 27.5 yards on two kick returns. Covey had two returns for a 10-yard average. He allowed a punt to sail over his head that was downed at the 9-yard line in the third quarter.

    Eagles coach Nick Sirianni watches the action Sunday vs. the Washington Commanders.

    Coaching: C

    Nick Sirianni will be criticized for his decision to rest his starters, especially after the Bears lost. But what the coach gained — giving his players physical and mental breaks — can’t yet be quantified. We’ll see how the playoffs pan out. For now, the No. 3-seed Eagles know their opponent: the No. 6-seed 49ers. The rest will play out accordingly.

    Offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo didn’t exactly open the playbook with McKee, but he unveiled some new concepts. The results were mixed. Some of his decisions were questionable. The pass on third-and-2 at the Washington 6 made less sense when the Eagles elected to go for it on fourth down before the half.

    Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio had more starters than Patullo. His guys up front mostly answered the bell. A secondary full of backups struggled.

  • Tanner McKee is exactly what the Eagles need … in a backup quarterback

    Tanner McKee is exactly what the Eagles need … in a backup quarterback

    There is a faction among Eagles fans and NFL cognoscenti that hoped Tanner McKee would on Sunday provide a quarterback controversy on which they could feed during the cold winter months. They hoped McKee, a sixth-round pick in 2023, might sufficiently shine in a meaningless game against a moribund team so that he might be considered a viable threat to Jalen Hurts, a two-time Pro Bowl player and the reigning Super Bowl MVP.

    That didn’t happen.

    That was never going to happen.

    McKee could have thrown for 350 yards with five touchdown passes and he still wouldn’t sniff the starting job in Philadelphia until Hurts gives it away.

    Hurts might throw three interceptions and he might fumble twice next weekend in the playoff opener against the 49ers and the starting job will still be his, both in September and in January.

    McKee started his second NFL game Sunday. It was an insignificant game against an insignificant team playing its least significant players.

    Tanner McKee is tackled by the Commanders’ Daron Payne and Jordan Magee.

    In this context, McKee looked fine: 21-for-40, one touchdown, one interception, against the five-win Commanders, who won, 24-17. He threw crisp passes, usually on time. He recognized defenses. He moved well in the pocket. He ran a couple of times.

    “I thought he did a lot of good things,” coach Nick Sirianni said.

    He also threw two uncatchable passes late in the fourth quarter that ended the Eagles’ chances to win, in the very moments when the Bears were in the process of losing to the Lions. An Eagles win and a Bears loss would have given the Eagles the No. 2 seed instead of No. 3, which would have guaranteed at least two home games in the playoffs.

    Notably, McKee did this without the services of the team’s top running back, four of its top offensive linemen, its top tight end, one of its top two receivers, and, after two series, both of its top receivers: DeVonta Smith played until he hit the 1,000-yard mark, then left.

    McKee looked a lot like he looked in a similar context: Game 17 of the 2024 season, when he beat the three-win Giants: 269 yards, two touchdowns, no turnovers.

    He didn’t face the best of the Commanders. They didn’t blitz much. They didn’t play particularly hard. And, of course, they stink.

    Still, McKee looked good enough to win a game or two, maybe even in the playoffs. This, for the Eagles, is excellent news: They have a competent backup quarterback on whom they have expended almost no draft or salary-cap capital.

    McKee makes just over $1 million, and he seems capable. Benched Giants has-been Russell Wilson will take home $10.5 million this season. The Jets’ Tyrod Taylor and the Broncos’ Jarrett Stidham each have two-year, $12 million contracts. Marcus Mariota, the Commanders’ understudy, made $8 million. The Panthers’ Andy Dalton and Jameis Winston, one of the QBs who replaced Wilson, each made $4 million.

    Let’s stop acting like the Eagles haven’t had a great season

    The Eagles’ biggest question entering the 2025 season didn’t involve the third cornerback, or defensive line depth, or the departure of mediocre right guard Mekhi Becton. The biggest question was:

    If Hurts got injured, as he has done each of the first five seasons of his career, and with no veteran backup on the roster, would McKee be good enough to replace him? After all, Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie subscribes to the notion that, if the most important player is the quarterback, then the second-most important player is the backup. That’s why he and Howie Roseman signed Nick Foles in 2017, and it’s why they drafted Hurts in 2020.

    Tanner McKee is tripped up by Washington Commanders defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw in the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field.

    Sunday’s performance delivered another indication that, yes, if Hurts gets hurt, McKee can do the job.

    Until then, it’s Hurts’ job. He’s been too good, or at least good enough, too often for too long.

    Further, cutting or moving Hurts before the end of the 2027 season would incur more than $20 million in dead money. McKee is under contract through 2026 for just over $1 million.

    Hurts has had his haters since he hit Philly. Every time he slumps, and every time he misses a receiver over the middle, the haters surface, louder than ever. It doesn’t matter if it’s Gardner Minshew, Kenny Pickett, or McKee: Their preferred choice is Anybody But Jalen.

    When Hurts struggled from Games 10-13, beginning in mid-November, multiple reports asserted that several people in the Eagles organization were wondering if benching Hurts in favor of McKee might be necessary to mount a viable Super Bowl defense. Hurts’ passer rating in that span was just 68.7. The Eagles averaged 17.8 points in those games and went 1-3. He turned the ball over seven times in those four games, including five times in a road loss to the Chargers, the worst game of his career and the last of that span.

    Nevertheless, Sirianni declared that any consideration of benching Hurts was “ridiculous” — a declaration that was, itself, ridiculous, considering how badly Hurts was playing.

    Nick Sirianni: Sitting Jalen Hurts ‘ridiculous’? Hardly. Bench him if he struggles Sunday.

    In the end, it didn’t matter. As his job security was being debated, Hurts responded with the best game of his career, a 31-0 win over the visiting, hapless Raiders. He further secured his place with solid wins in Washington and Buffalo.

    The Chargers game was an aberration. Hurts has nearly mastered the art of not losing games. He’ll even win you one every now and then.

    For a team that possesses an elite defense, powerful weapons, and a sturdy offensive line, that’s all that matters.

    No matter what happens in the next few weeks, there will be no legitimate calls for McKee to start any meaningful games.

    Not until mid-November, anyway.

  • Eagles backups fall short against Commanders, squander chance to collect NFC’s No. 2 seed

    Eagles backups fall short against Commanders, squander chance to collect NFC’s No. 2 seed

    The No. 3 seed will have to do for the reigning Super Bowl champions.

    With Nick Sirianni opting to rest most of the starters, the Eagles fell, 24-17, to the Washington Commanders on Sunday night. After the Los Angeles Rams’ victory over the Arizona Cardinals, the Eagles will draw the No. 6-seeded San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs.

    Meanwhile, the Detroit Lions defeated the Chicago Bears, 19-16, on Sunday. Because of the Eagles’ loss, the Bears clinched the NFC’s No. 2 seed.

    The Eagles backups couldn’t pull off the win. Tanner McKee and the offense got out to an early 7-0 lead over the Commanders, who came out on top after three lead changes throughout the game.

    The Eagles had multiple opportunities to even the score late in the fourth quarter but turned it over on downs twice. With 1 minute, 21 seconds remaining, McKee threw incomplete to Kylen Granson on fourth-and-3 from the Commanders’ 31.

    The Eagles got the ball back with 53 seconds left at their own 28, but McKee couldn’t make anything happen (three incompletions, one sack).

    Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ regular-season finale:

    Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne grabs Eagles quarterback Tanner McKee.

    Roller coaster for McKee

    In the most meaningful game of his NFL career to date, McKee made big plays and big mistakes.

    He was efficient in the passing game to start. Through his first two possessions, McKee went 5-for-7 for 82 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown pass to Grant Calcaterra that put the Eagles up, 7-0.

    He also had DeVonta Smith at his disposal for those first two possessions, as the 27-year-old receiver sought to eclipse 1,000 receiving yards for the season. He needed just 44 yards to hit the milestone and he quickly earned them. McKee opened the game with a 17-yard completion to Smith in the flat.

    Smith caught two more passes on the ensuing possession, an 8-yarder and a leaping 27-yard grab over Commanders cornerback Jonathan Jones. His three catches for 52 yards brought him to 1,008 on the season, prompting Sirianni to pull him from the game.

    McKee and the Eagles offense faltered in the red zone on the next two possessions. In the second quarter, they marched 54 yards down the field to the Commanders’ 6-yard line, but Washington stopped the Eagles on fourth-and-2. McKee had pressure in his face from defensive end Jacob Martin, fled the pocket to his right, and threw the ball away.

    Later in the second quarter following an interception from Jalyx Hunt, Darius Cooper caught a 17-yard, in-breaking pass to the Commanders’ 5. However, the rookie receiver spun the ball at Jones in celebration and was flagged for taunting.

    The Eagles couldn’t overcome the 15-yard penalty. On third-and-10 from the Commanders’ 20 with 59 seconds left in the first half, McKee threw an interception to safety Jeremy Reaves in the end zone on a pass intended for Jahan Dotson.

    “Just me trying to force it,” McKee said of his interception after the game. “Felt like I tried to get too much back in one play. I saw the coverage, I knew what it was, knew it was going to be a tight throw, tried to fit a really tight ball in. Just dumb, trying to force it. Obviously that was one of the big things that I can learn from.”

    The Commanders moved into field goal range on the brief possession that followed the pick, setting up Jake Moody for a 56-yard field goal to pull Washington ahead, 10-7.

    In the third quarter, McKee turned down an opportunity to scramble for a first down on second-and-1, instead throwing an incomplete pass intended for Cooper. Tank Bigsby couldn’t pick up the requisite yard on third down, forcing the Eagles to punt from their own 29.

    McKee’s performance continued to slide on the final drive of the game. He threw a pair of incomplete passes on first and second downs, took a sack on third down, then tossed another out of bounds on fourth.

    He finished the night going 21-for-40 for 241 yards with a touchdown, and an interception.

    Jalyx Hunt made an impact, but the defense faltered late.

    Hunt’s surge overshadowed

    A handful of key Eagles defensive players earned significant snaps against the Commanders, including Hunt, Jordan Davis, and Moro Ojomo.

    Hunt, the 2024 third-rounder out of Houston Christian, was clutch against the Commanders with his pair of takeaways. In the second quarter, as the Commanders sought to break a 7-7 tie, Hunt dove to undercut a pass intended for Deebo Samuel and picked off Josh Johnson deep in Eagles territory.

    He had an assist from Joshua Uche, who generated the initial pressure on Johnson that forced him to make an ill-advised throw.

    Hunt also scooped up a botched snap in the third quarter, giving McKee and the offense prime field position at the Commanders’ 28. The fumble recovery set up Bigsby’s 2-yard touchdown run.

    But the second-year edge rusher’s heroics were overshadowed by a shaky showing from the Eagles’ depth cornerbacks. Jakorian Bennett, Kelee Ringo, and Mac McWilliams combined for six defensive pass interference or holding penalties (three on Bennett, two on Ringo, one on McWilliams).

    In the fourth quarter, Bennett’s pass interference penalty in the end zone gave the Commanders a fresh set of downs. The Commanders capitalized with a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end John Bates, tying the score at 17.

    “It is what it is, I guess,” Bennett said. “I’m going to try and clean up on film and whatnot. But I’m just out there trying to play my game.”

    Ringo’s pass interference call, which Terry McLaurin drew halfway through the fourth quarter, took the Commanders from their own 23 to the Eagles’ 45. The Commanders eventually took advantage of the field position when Johnson scrambled for the game-winning 1-yard touchdown run to put his team up, 24-17.

    Tank Bigsby got some time in the rushing spotlight in Week 18.

    Big Tank

    With Saquon Barkley resting, Bigsby earned his most extended look of the season since the Eagles acquired him from the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sept. 9.

    He rose to the occasion. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound running back collected a season-high 75 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. He also snagged a catch for a career-long 31 yards in the second quarter, turning a dump-off into a long gain while breaking a tackle from Jordan Magee.

    In the third quarter, Bigsby scored his second career touchdown as an Eagle. After Hunt recovered a Johnson fumble in the red zone, Bigsby had five straight carries, starting at the Commanders’ 18-yard line. His 2-yard punch-in on third-and-goal allowed the Eagles to regain the lead, 14-10.

    “My confidence has been there,” Bigsby said. “When I get the opportunity, be the best player I can be for my teammates and be the best player I can be for this team.”

    Injury report

    Brandon Johnson, who started at safety alongside Sydney Brown, injured his ankle while attempting to pick off a deflected pass in the second quarter.

    With Johnson out, Michael Carter moved from nickel cornerback to safety. McWilliams, the fifth-round rookie out of Central Florida, slotted in at nickel corner.

    Calcaterra hurt his ankle and knee on a hip-drop tackle from Reaves in the third quarter.

    Brett Toth was evaluated for a concussion in the fourth quarter and did not return to action.

  • Eagles shouldn’t sweat potential playoff matchup vs. exposed 49ers (but Rams and Packers remain as possibilities)

    Eagles shouldn’t sweat potential playoff matchup vs. exposed 49ers (but Rams and Packers remain as possibilities)

    These aren’t the Niners of old. They aren’t even the Niners of two years ago.

    That’s good news for the Eagles, who moved one step closer to facing San Francisco in the opening round of the playoffs after the 49ers fell to the Seahawks, 13-3, on Saturday night. Seattle’s victory in the first batch of Week 18 games brought the NFC playoff picture into clearer focus. The Seahawks have clinched the No. 1 overall seed, thus earning themselves an opening round bye and a home game in the divisional round against the lowest-seeded team to survive. That team will not be the Eagles, who cannot face Seattle until the NFC championship game.

    Complete NFL playoff picture after Saturday’s games

    This was the outcome Birds fans should have been rooting for on Saturday night. Had the 49ers won, the Eagles would be standing on the precipice of an opening-round matchup against the Seahawks or the Rams, the two most impressive teams in the NFC during the regular season. The only other scenario would have required them to beat the Commanders and the Bears to lose to the Lions, thereby giving the Eagles the No. 2 seed and an opening round matchup against the seventh-seeded Packers. (That scenario remains on the table entering play on Sunday.)

    The Eagles could still face the Rams, who outplayed them in the regular season before the Eagles pulled out a 33-26 win on Jordan Davis’ blocked field-goal return for a touchdown at the buzzer. In order to avoid them, they need the Rams to beat the Cardinals today, thereby clinching the No. 5 seed and knocking San Francisco down to No. 6. A Rams loss to the Cardinals would mean an Eagles-Rams rematch at Lincoln Financial Field next weekend. Keep in mind, the Cardinals have lost eight straight games and 13 of 14 since a 2-0 start.

    To recap the three scenarios in play:

    Scenario 1: If the Eagles win and Bears lose, the Eagles get the No. 2 seed and an opening-round game against the Packers.

    If the Eagles lose OR the Bears win, then the Eagles get the No. 3 seed and …

    Scenario 2: If the Rams beat the Cardinals, the Eagles face the 49ers.

    Scenario 3: If the Cardinals beat the Rams, the Eagles face the Rams.

    The 49ers are the clear preference over the Rams. San Francisco has been ravaged by injuries on the defensive side of the ball, with all-world linebacker Fred Warner and defensive end Nick Bosa both lost for the season. The Niners suffered two more injuries Saturday night, in fact, with linebackers Dee Winters and Tatum Bethune both leaving and not returning.

    Middle linebacker Fred Warner is among the key 49ers who are injured with the playoffs set to begin.

    The 49ers are still dangerous. They showed that with their 42-38 shootout win over the Bears in Week 17. But they also showed Saturday night that they can struggle against a top-tier defense. San Francisco gained just 173 yards and posted nine first downs against the Seahawks. A big variable is All-Pro tackle Trent Williams, who missed Saturday’s game with a hamstring injury after being questionable to play.

    The 49ers were no match for the Seahawks’ power running game, allowing 180 yards on the ground. It was the sixth time this season they allowed an opponent to gain at least 360 yards of total offense.

    The Eagles certainly wouldn’t be looking past a playoff game against the 49ers. But it was and is the best of the likeliest options.

  • Eagles legend Billy Ray Barnes dies at age 90

    Eagles legend Billy Ray Barnes dies at age 90

    Eagles legend Billy Ray Barnes, the three-time Pro Bowl halfback, who aided in the team’s 1960 NFL Championship, died on Wednesday in his hometown of Landis, N.C.

    He was 90.

    Mr. Barnes was a second-round selection in the 1957 NFL draft out of Wake Forest and spent five seasons in Philadelphia.

    “He was 90 and had a fabulous life,” said Mr. Barnes’ daughter, Billi Barnes Akins, via statement.

    In his first year, Mr. Barnes led the Eagles in both rushing and receiving. He would go on to end his career in Philly with 2,391 yards and 20 rushing touchdowns, and had eight more scores on 120 receptions.

    Mr. Barnes had stints in Washington (1962-63) and Minnesota (1965-66). After his playing career, he served as an assistant coach with the Saints and Falcons.

    He was inducted into the Wake Forest Hall of Fame in 1975 following his stellar college career, where he earned All-America honors, and in 1956, became the first player in the Atlantic Coast Conference to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a single season.

    Mr. Barnes returned to Philadelphia in 2010 for the 50-year reunion of the 1960 NFL championship team.

    “The biggest thing was the friendships that he had made there,” Akins said. “They were lifelong. He talked to a bunch of guys on the phone for years. He enjoyed everything about Philadelphia.”