Philadelphia local news, sports, jobs, cars, homes

Category: Eagles/NFL

  • Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    Nick Sirianni defended Kevin Patullo, but it might not matter if Jeffrey Lurie decides he must act to save the Eagles’ season

    It was easy to catch the chants rising out of the Lincoln Financial Field stands Friday, a call for change that feels closer and closer to happening, no matter what Nick Sirianni might say, no matter how much the Eagles head coach might stand behind his friend and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo. Those “FIRE-KEVIN” singsongs were clear to everyone inside the stadium and to a nationwide streaming audience on Prime Video.

    Just like the Eagles’ 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears and another ragged offensive performance, those chants and that atmosphere of frustration and disgruntlement were a sign that this season is reaching a tipping point. And for all the loyalty to Patullo and defiance to reality that Sirianni flashed after the game, his words might not end up meaning much.

    “No, we’re not changing the play-caller,” Sirianni said, “but we will evaluate everything.”

    The most important word in that sentence from Sirianni, though, was we, because we could end up including team chairman Jeffrey Lurie and vice president Howie Roseman, and those members of we have filmed this movie before — and not that long ago. Sirianni was equally steadfast in 2023 about taking up for then-defensive coordinator Sean Desai, but, sure enough, Sirianni’s defense of him was about as strong and effective as the Eagles’ defense under Desai and his replacement, Matt Patricia. That is, not very.

    Now Patullo has become the latest poster child for the Peter Principle. He’s gregarious and friendly and has spent a lot of time in the NFL coaching quarterbacks but had spent no time calling plays until Sirianni turned the offense over to him. Now a unit that boasts some of the most talented and accomplished and highly paid skill-position players and offensive linemen in the league is among the worst offenses in the league. Twelve games this season, and the Eagles have scored 24 points or fewer in eight — two-thirds — of them, including the last four.

    Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals

    Lurie and the Eagles aren’t about to bench Jalen Hurts or A.J. Brown or Saquon Barkley or anyone else. And even if Patullo is hamstrung as a play-caller by Hurts’ height, by his reluctance or inability to throw the ball into tight windows of space, by the injuries and spotty play of the offensive line, he also hasn’t shown that he’s creative and imaginative enough to overcome those flaws and shortcomings in the offense.

    Sirianni’s mantra, since his arrival, has been that players make plays, that a wide receiver or a lineman or a tight end, if he’s coached well enough in the fundamentals, ought to prevail in his one-on-one matchup against a cornerback or a defensive end or a linebacker. The problem for the Eagles is that they’re winning fewer of those micro-contests, those games within the game, than they did a year ago, and Patullo isn’t helping them win more of them.

    A simple question was put to tight end Dallas Goedert after Sunday’s game: How often do you guys feel like you have a strategic advantage on a defense, where you’re going to fool them or you’re going to run something that they don’t see coming?

    Goedert paused for five seconds, then answered.

    “Tough question. I don’t know if I really have an answer for that one. We’ve got to make plays. We’ve got to execute better. And all 11 have to be on the same page.”

    Something is missing offensively for the Eagles, and it might be Kevin Patullo who will have to answer for it.

    Barkley refused to chalk up the Eagles’ struggles to their strategy or system. “I don’t really look into plays like that,” he said. “The times that we have successful plays, it’s not just because we have a strategic edge. We’ve got guys making plays. We’ve got coaches making great calls.

    “I don’t want to put words in your mouth, but I know what everyone is probably saying. When you go back and watch the film, we’ve got some great calls, and we just didn’t make the plays, or we’ll have a penalty. We keep seeing the same stuff. I get up here and say the same thing, and it’s not like I’m just feeding you guys these answers to, I don’t know, be a pro. But it’s the truth, and I guarantee Jordan [Mailata’s] saying the same thing. Zack [Baun’s] saying the same thing. Lane [Johnson’s] saying the same thing. The reality is, we’ve got to go do it.”

    There is a chicken-or-egg element to the Patullo question. No one, other than Patullo himself, can say for certain whether he’s orchestrating this offense to account for Hurts’ weaknesses, whether he’s calling what Hurts is comfortable with and capable of carrying out, whether Hurts’ limitations are limiting Patullo’s options. There’s no getting around the reality that the Eagles have made Hurts and the passing game the locus of their offense before — early in 2021, early in 2024 — and each time, they shifted their play selection toward running the ball, toward taking it out of Hurts’ hands.

    Last season, they won a championship with that approach because Barkley and the offensive line were that good, that dominant. The Eagles could afford to be predictable then; their opponents knew what was coming and still were powerless to stop it.

    Now the Eagles’ opponents know what’s coming, know how to stop it, and do stop it. Lurie has always placed a premium on having a team that could score lots of points and do so relatively easily, and he can’t be happy with this two-game losing streak, this season-long slog, and the offense’s contributions to those developments. What had been a slump is now a slide and could yet be another collapse, and Lurie isn’t likely to let his head coach’s assertions and assurances stand in the way of a change that he deems necessary to save a shot at another Super Bowl.

  • ‘What’d I say? They’re going to fold’: C.J. Gardner-Johnson gets the last word as Bears beat Eagles

    ‘What’d I say? They’re going to fold’: C.J. Gardner-Johnson gets the last word as Bears beat Eagles

    C.J. Gardner-Johnson spread his arms out in celebration and walked toward the visiting locker room. The other one used to be his, in 2022 and again in 2024. The trash-talking defensive back, on his third team this year alone, came back against his former team, in his former city, and had the last laugh.

    He wasn’t going to be quiet about it.

    “I ain’t ever lied to y’all, and I ain’t going to start lying,” Gardner-Johnson said as he walked into the Chicago Bears’ locker room following their 24-15 victory over the Eagles. “I ain’t going to lie to y’all. What’d I say? They’re going to fold.”

    The Eagles traded Gardner-Johnson, who led them with six interceptions in 2024, in the offseason along with a sixth-round pick to the Houston Texans for Kenyon Green, an offensive lineman who didn’t make their initial 53-man roster.

    The Eagles, Gardner-Johnson said in a podcast interview over the summer, were “scared of a competitor.”

    “Simple as that,” he told Ryan Clark on The Pivot.

    Howie Roseman said the Eagles made the deal because of financial constraints.

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Gardner-Johnson, of course, hasn’t had a normal 2025 season. He was released by the Houston Texans in late September after three games. He then landed on the Baltimore Ravens’ practice squad before the Bears signed him and reunited him with defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, who coached Gardner-Johnson in New Orleans.

    But he has made an impact with a Bears team that is now 9-3 and in first place in the NFC North. Gardner-Johnson’s departure from Philadelphia was in the spotlight this week not just because the Bears were coming to town but because the Eagles are depleted at safety after rookie Drew Mukuba, the Eagles’ second-round pick, suffered an ankle fracture.

    Gardner-Johnson played mostly at nickel and helped stymie a struggling Eagles offense. He finished with three tackles and one quarterback hit. What was he seeing on film entering Friday?

    “Stop the run and then make them go the long, hard way,” he said.

    The Eagles struggled to run the ball and couldn’t beat an opposing defense missing multiple starters through the air.

    “We knew in order to win this game we’d have to compete with their defense and the best defense on the field was going to win this game,” Gardner-Johnson said.

    “It’s hard to get wins in this league. To win in a stadium like this, against the defending champs, it shows you that you got to have a lot of confidence in your teammates. This team has a lot of confidence in each other. I don’t think we’re worried about scheme or who we play. We just worry about getting each other’s backs and going out there and fighting for 60 minutes. We’re going to win the game.”

    Asked why he said he knew the Eagles would “fold,” Gardner-Johnson said: “Because I’ve been here before. I’ve been here before. You only wear black uniforms if you feel confident.”

    Then he winked.

    “I told the guys that this is one of those where you got to come in and really pin your ears back and really go play ball,” he said. “It’s going to be a physical game, short week, and it’s about who’s going to be the most physical team, and we showed it today.”

    C.J. Gardner-Johnson led the Eagles with six interceptions last season on the way to winning a Super Bowl.

    And the special feeling winning back in Philadelphia?

    “We can finally close the chapter on something,” Gardner-Johnson said. “It’s good now.”

    About three minutes into Gardner-Johnson’s postgame media availability, a teammate handed him a phone. A Bears public relations staffer ended Gardner-Johnson’s session, but he spoke live on a podcast with LeSean McCoy and Emmanuel Acho.

    “Was you talking [trash] out there?” McCoy asked him.

    “No, I got too much respect for them to even disrespect the players I played with,” Gardner-Johnson replied. “We disrespected them on defense.”

    Then McCoy asked: “Was the offense too easy? Predictable?”

    Gardner-Johnson leaned in close and winked. For once, there was nothing he needed to say.

    Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals
  • Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Instant grades on the Eagles’ performance in their 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears:

    Quarterback: D

    Jalen Hurts had two costly turnovers. He tossed his second interception of the season in the third quarter when he failed to account for safety Kevin Byard in the post. And he fumbled on a third-quarter Tush Push when Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright stripped the ball after Hurts ran into a wall.

    Eagles’ issues extend to defense in wire-to-wire Black Friday loss to Bears

    The windy conditions at Lincoln Financial Field made it difficult on the quarterbacks. But Hurts missed too many layups and made bad decisions. He threw behind an open DeVonta Smith on a key early third down.

    There were some positives. Hurts bounced back after the pick and hooked up with A.J. Brown for a 33-yard touchdown. As a runner, he had some success with the return of the run-pass option game. He also picked up 23 yards off a draw in the third quarter.

    But Hurts was at the center of the Eagles offense’s terrible showing, and has been for most of the season.

    Running back: C-

    Saquon Barkley had a little more success on the ground, rushing 13 times for 56 yards (4.3 average). But there was an opportunity to do more against one of the NFL’s worst run defenses and a unit that was down three off-ball linebackers. Barkley’s longest gain was for 15 yards off the left side in the third quarter.

    The Eagles tried a two-back play with Tank Bigsby, but Barkley didn’t look back for the pass off an option. Even if he caught it, a defender was ready to pounce. Barkley also had a late drop.

    Receiver / Tight end: C-

    Wide receiver A.J. Brown led the Eagles, catching 10 of 12 targets for 132 yards and two touchdowns. But a lot of his production felt empty. He came back for a jump ball on a 33-yard touchdown.

    Brown had two more penalties for a team-high eight. The first — a false start — was legit. The second — a pass interference — was questionable. Brown pushed off, but it was relatively soft. The flag negated a third-down conversion.

    DeVonta Smith caught a 30-yard pass on a nicely drawn-up RPO early in the second quarter, but he went long stretches without getting involved. Dallas Goedert caught just one pass for 5 yards until the last drive — despite the Bears’ issues covering tight ends coming in.

    Offensive line: D+

    No unit gets a pass on the offensive side of the ball. The O-line just hasn’t been itself and whenever the Eagles have struggled historically, it’s been because they can’t block consistently.

    Left guard Landon Dickerson just doesn’t look close to healthy. On Hurts’ interception, he allowed pressure that forced the quarterback out of the pocket. Dickerson had a false start early on. Right guard Tyler Steen was up and down, as usual. Left tackle Jordan Mailata kept Hurts’ blind side mostly clean, but he hasn’t been the same run blocker this season.

    Like several of his fellow offensive linemen, Jordan Mailata (right) hasn’t had the same type of season as he did a year ago.

    Fred Johnson started a second straight game for the injured Lane Johnson (foot). Barkley was dropped at the line after Johnson was beaten by a slanting lineman in the third quarter. He led the way on Barkley’s 15-yard tote a drive later, though. Center Cam Jurgens keeps playing through injury, but it’s hurting the offense. Jurgens and Steen combined for a lead block on a Barkley 9-yard run in the first quarter.

    Defensive line: D+

    Stopping the run is an 11-man deal, but the front was continuously beaten at the point of attack. The Bears offense often went heavy to keep the Eagles in base personnel and they ran it down their throats. Running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai each went over 100 yards as Chicago gained 281 yards on the ground.

    Defensive tackle Jalen Carter made some undisciplined guesses as a run defender. He was blocked way out of his gap on Monangai’s 17-yard run off the right in the first quarter. And Carter took a bad angle on Swift’s 3-yard touchdown run at the end of that drive.

    Carter did pick up a sack in the second quarter after Nolan Smith hit Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. Moro Ojomo blew up a third-down screen try in the third quarter, but was bullied at times vs. the run. Jordan Davis had a run stop for no yards after fellow defensive tackle Byron Young held up his block in the second quarter. Young was first to the ball on the fourth-down run stop on the Bears’ opening drive. He failed to bring down Swift on a later long run.

    The D-line had some moments in the pass rush. Jalyx Hunt snatched his second interception of the season when he diagnosed a screen in the third quarter. The outside linebacker leaped and deflected the ball to himself. Outside linebacker Jaelan Phillips batted a third-down pass to the ground in the second quarter. Phillips also drew a holding penalty just before the half. Brandon Graham hurried Williams into forfeiting himself after dropping to pass in the third quarter.

    Linebacker: D+

    Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun just weren’t good enough in helping to stop the run at the second level. They got bullied and erased on runs up the middle.

    Nick Sirianni and coaches struggle again as Eagles lose second straight with poor focus and fundamentals

    Dean was blocked to the ground on Swift’s 23-yard bolt up the middle on a split zone run in the first quarter. He also gave up the edge on Monangai’s 4-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. Baun got tossed on a Swift 17-yard rush in the second quarter.

    Dean, who finished with 12 tackles, was also called for holding on a short third-quarter pass off play-action.

    Rookie Jihaad Campbell hardly played, if at all.

    Cornerback: C

    Like Hurts, Williams had issues through the air. Some of it was self-inflicted, some of it was due to the Eagles’ pass defense. The quarterback completed just 17 of 36 passes for 154 yards. He had some key throws on third and fourth down, though.

    Adoree’ Jackson and Quinyon Mitchell weren’t challenged much on the outside, but they didn’t surrender many catches. They had more to do in the run game and didn’t do well in the open field. Jackson couldn’t bring Swift down on a second-quarter run.

    Cooper DeJean did a little more in run support. He also broke up an early pass to Rome Odunze.

    Safety: D

    Sydney Brown got his first full-time start of the season with Drew Mukuba (fractured ankle) on injured reserve. He struggled at times. Brown took a bad angle from the post on Swift’s 23-yard run. He didn’t bite on a play-action boot and held a short pass to minimal gain in the second quarter. It could have been worse had Williams been more accurate on two early throws after Brown was beaten in the end zone.

    Eagles safety Reed Blankenship had a game to forget against the Bears.

    Reed Blankenship might have been worse. He got toasted by Bears tight end Cole Kmet on the game-clinching 28-yard touchdown. Earlier, Blankenship was late to Bears receiver Olamide Zaccheaus on a third-and-7 conversion. And he slipped and lost tight end Colston Loveland when the Bears converted fourth-and-5 late in the third quarter.

    Blankenship led the Eagles with 14 tackles, many of them after runs into the secondary.

    Special teams: C-

    A steady wind wreaked havoc on the kicking game. Jake Elliott split the uprights on a 44-yard try. But he hooked an extra point wide left in the third quarter kicking again into the south end of the stadium. Elliott also missed a 52-yarder with a few seconds to play.

    Punter Braden Mann did well considering the conditions. He averaged 42.6 net yards on five punts.

    Britain Covey played in his first game in nearly a year and returned punts in place of the injured Xavier Gipson. Covey scooped up a roller and went 9 yards the other way in the second quarter. Covey was also back on kicks, and had one return for 22 yards. Will Shipley averaged 23.5 yards on two returns.

    Coaching: D-

    Nick Sirianni’s Eagles lost two games in a row for the second time this season as they fell to 8-4 — a game behind the 9-3 Bears in conference playoff seeding. Potentially more damaging is allowing the 6-5-1 Dallas Cowboys back in the division race.

    Sirianni’s undisciplined team had seven more penalties — three of them of the pre-snap variety. He again showed little faith in his offense when he let the clock tick down to the two-minute warning before the half. His high-priced offense just shouldn’t be this bad and that’s on the coaching.

    The execution has been bad, but offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo just hasn’t had the answers. He went with more RPOs and zone reads because of the cold and windy weather, but just wasn’t sharp enough. Sirianni may have to switch up play-calling, although there isn’t an obvious replacement on staff.

    Eagles play-caller Kevin Patullo failed to find the answers once again against Chicago.

    The Eagles entered last in the NFL in three-and-out percentage (33.3), and will likely remain there after Week 13 having gone three-and-out on 4 of 11 possessions. The Eagles were booed as they headed to the tunnel for the half and it seemed justified after they scored just three points.

    Defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s unit got manhandled on the ground and allowed its most rushing yards in his two years in Philly. The defense tightened the hatches after allowing 204 yards and 10 points to the Bears on their first three possessions. But it again surrendered under the weight of the offense’s ineffectiveness.

  • Jalen Hurts weighs in on the Tush Push, and more from the Eagles-Bears Black Friday broadcast

    Jalen Hurts weighs in on the Tush Push, and more from the Eagles-Bears Black Friday broadcast

    It was a holiday letdown for the Birds, who dropped their second consecutive game on Friday, losing, 24-15, to the Chicago Bears.

    If you toughed it out in the cold at the Linc, or for some reason want to relive that game, here’s everything you missed from the broadcast:

    Pregame

    All of Philadelphia’s mascots were on-site for Prime Video’s extended pregame show.

    The Phanatic even cheered on a local Eagles fan in a push-up challenge against former NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez, who dropped down to attempt a few of his own.

    Even Jason Kelce was on-site with New Heights and made a brief appearance on the telecast, sharing why he believes Eagles fans are the “best in the world.” More on that in Monday’s edition of The Inquirer.

    Malcolm Jenkins, who was inducted into the Eagles Hall of Fame on Friday, Chase Utley, and Kyle Lowry shared their own messages

    Angelo’s cameo

    In order to explain the drop-off in the Eagles offense, Prime Video took a trip to newly minted Michelin Bib Gourmand cheesesteak establishment Angelo’s to take a look at the stats.

    “‘Wit’ or ‘wit’out’ a consistent offense, they’re still 8-3,” sideline reporter Kaylee Hartung said.

    Someone gave them the right intel for where to go. Shout-out to the Philadelphian on Prime Video’s staff, although brutal to use such a great cheesesteak to explain the Eagles’ struggles.

    How did The Inquirer review Michelin’s top Philadelphia picks in the past?

    Ben Johnson’s inspo

    Ben Johnson took his high school postgame celebration — a riff on Billy Williams’ “Good, better, best” Hall of Fame speech — and brought it to his first head coaching gig in Chicago.

    Johnson played high school football at A.C. Reynolds in Asheville, N.C., and graduated in 2004. Prime Video resurfaced a clip from Johnson’s high school days.

    Nick Sirianni and coaches struggle again as Eagles lose second straight | Marcus Hayes

    What’s a wedge buster?

    What exactly is the wedge buster sandwich? I had many questions, and, to be honest, I still can’t quite tell what’s in it. But the wedge buster is Prime Video’s response to the Thanksgiving meal served by Fox at the end of Thursday’s game, an extremely large sandwich made with pizza crust that the winning team gets to eat postgame.

    Maybe just go to Middle Child next time?

    Kevin Patullo critiques

    Offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo did nothing to calm the heat around the Birds offense in the first half, with the team scoring just three points and compiling 83 yards of offense and two first downs.

    There wasn’t much more to say about the state of the Eagles at halftime.

    “Kevin Patullo does not have the answers,” former All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman said. “He’s shown incompetency over the last couple games. … We need a little wingardium leviosa.”

    Sherman waved a little Harry Potter wand to emphasize his point, but it’s not the first time he’s criticized Patullo.

    Eagles fans

    The broadcast got lots of mileage out of disappointed Eagles fans at the Linc, including my close personal friend, Philly Sports Santa, and the Grinch.

    The boos were ringing down loudly on the broadcast after most offensive plays.

    The Bears wanted to weaponize that atmosphere entering Friday’s game.

    “If their offense goes three-and-out starting the game, they’re going to start booing them,” Bears safety and Philly native Kevin Byard said. “It’s one of those environments where it’s going to be very hostile. So hopefully we can start fast and kind of get the crowd against their own team.”

    Prime Video even did a b-roll segment of Eagles fans — and even Santa — headed for the exits after the Bears took a two-score lead in the fourth.

    Brutal.

    Tush Push hate?

    Al Michaels finally asked a Tush Push question we haven’t heard before: Who on the team is the best at pushing Jalen Hurts on the famous quarterback sneak?

    It took him a bit to get into his story because just after starting it, Hurts fumbled the ball and then the broadcast cut to commercial, leaving the captive audience (me) waiting for the end of the story.

    “You know what, I was always good without being pushed on the quarterback sneaks,” Hurts told Michaels. “I don’t need to be pushed.”

    “You know who might vote against the Tush Push? Hurts!” Michaels said.

    “He might be the first one!” color analyst Kirk Herbstreit said jokingly.

    Two-point conversion

    Herbstreit and Michaels were surprised to see Nick Sirianni and the Birds go for two down nine points in the fourth with just over three minutes to go.

    Had the Birds kicked the extra point, they could have made it a one-score game, although they would have needed to go for two if they managed to score another touchdown.

    “To me, it was a no-brainer,” Herbstreit said. “You’re down eight, you’ve got all three timeouts and the two-minute warning, you stop them on three runs, with A.J. Brown and that offense.”

    Instead, the Birds remained down nine points, which made a comeback nearly impossible. That said, the Eagles needed to go for two at some point anyway if they were going to tie the game. By going for two first, you have all the information about what the rest of the game needs to look like instead of running the clock down to near zero and then failing on the two-point try.

  • Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals

    Nick Sirianni, Kevin Patullo struggle as Eagles lose again due to poor focus, fundamentals

    Jalen Hurts gave up two third-quarter turnovers Friday against the Chicago Bears — first, a bad, deep throw, then a fumble during a Tush Push. Both inexcusable. Both plays that reek of poor fundamentals.

    Poor fundamentals mean poor coaching.

    Bears running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai ran for 125 and 130 yards, respectively. It’s the first time since 1960 that two opposing runners gained more than 100 yards on Eagles home turf — astonishing, considering how awful some of the Eagles’ defenses have been. They surrendered a total of 281 rushing yards, the most they’ve allowed in a decade.

    How did this happen?

    Mainly, poor tackling. Poor tackling means poor fundamentals.

    Poor fundamentals mean poor coaching.

    As has so often happened this season, the offensive play calls took far too long to be communicated to Hurts, then from him to the team. First-time offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo is 12 games into his career as a play-caller. It’s not as if the offense is particularly complex. Crowd noise was no factor: It was a home game.

    Maybe they couldn’t hear above the boos.

    Bears running back D’Andre Swift runs for 17 yards past a fallen Cooper DeJean during the second quarter.

    The Eagles’ Super Bowl hangover is getting worse as time grows short in the 2025 season. As was the case after Nick Sirianni and the Birds won the NFC title after the 2022 season, the coach and the team, who won Super Bowl LIX, have been unimaginative, ineffective, and have appeared unmotivated for most of the season.

    It took 11 games in 2023 for the malaise to collapse the season. It has taken only 10 games in 2025.

    After the Eagles blew a 21-point lead and committed 14 penalties at Dallas on Sunday, Sirianni fell on the sword. He did so again Friday:

    “We all have to do a better job. And that’s going to be starting with us as coaches — starting with me, as a coach.”

    For the second straight week, he swore he wouldn’t replace Patullo, who is reaching Sean Desai-levels of unpopularity. (Desai was the scapegoat defensive coordinator for part of the lost 2023 season.)

    They got paid. They got Super Bowl rings. And now, the Eagles’ offense is unmotivated.

    Blame Nick. Blame Kevin. Blame whoever you like but the Eagles are now 8-4 after a 24-15 loss to the visiting Bears. Petulant receiver A.J. Brown caught 10 passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns, and had eight catches for 110 yards at Dallas in the previous game, so he’s been productive and presumably happy, but he’s an outlier.

    The Eagles’ well-paid, pedigreed offense has managed just three solid drives in the last six quarters, and one came against a prevent defense in the fourth quarter Friday night.

    The Eagles were unprepared for Dallas’ five-man front in their last game. They were unprepared to stop the Bears’ running attack Friday. They don’t seem to know what’s coming. On the other hand, the Eagles offense and defense both seem entirely predictable, and when they aren’t disciplined, they’re a disaster.

    “Turnovers and sloppy sloppiness,” said center Cam Jurgens.

    How to fix it?

    “Watching film being brutally honest.”

    It sounds as if there’s been less accountability lately.

    “You know, in a walk-through somebody false starts — like we need to make a point of every single part,” Jurgens said. “You know, and it’s happening in the game. We need to make sure we’re covering all of our bases and stay on top of it, because we’re just the sloppier team today.”

    There might have been a play or two Friday that the officials didn’t call in the Eagles’ favor, but if you’re underthrowing passes and failing to cover backs out of the backfield, and then you’re begging the refs to bail you out, well, that’s just kind of sad.

    Speaking of sad, the Eagles’ final possession of the first half went like this:

    • Weird, soft, 1-yard pass to Brown;
    • The Eagles wasted about 30 seconds when they could not get a play call in before the two-minute warning. In a bizarre moment postgame, Sirianni, clearly rattled and desperate to protect Patullo, delivered a nonsensical answer that asserted that they wasted that time on purpose;
    • Aborted route over the middle by Brown, who would have been hit hard by Jaylon Jones as he caught it;
    • Offensive pass interference on Brown, who pushed off (softly) to negate a 12-yard completion;
    • On third-and-19, an 11-yard pass to Will Shipley, who, with 1 minute, 43 seconds to play, foolishly ran out of bounds, saving the Bears about 30 seconds.
    • Braden Mann then shanked a downwind punt 44 yards. He shanked another at the start of the fourth quarter that went 40 yards.

    Needless to say, the Eagles left Lincoln Financial Field to a chorus of boos. They’d gained just 83 yards in the first half, their worst first-half production of the season.

    It got worse.

    On the first play of the second half, Hurts hit Saquon Barkley in the right shoulder pad with a pass. Barkley wasn’t ready. Hurts stared him down. In the fourth quarter, Barkley dropped another pass.

    Even when things went right, they went wrong.

    Midway through the third quarter, from the Bears’ 33, Hurts went deep. He underthrew Brown, who adjusted, ripped the ball away from Nahshon Wright, and walked into the end zone to cut it to 10-9.

    A few seconds later, kicker Jake Elliott pulled the point-after attempt left.

    Seriously.

    The Eagles now have nine days to prepare for a West Coast road game against the Los Angeles Chargers, a 7-4 team that is likely to be 8-4 after Sunday’s home game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

    That’s a lot of time for extra coaching.

    That is, if Sirianni and his staff are up to it.

    Jerry Jones reveals who saved the Cowboys’ season; Tom Brady’s Chip Kelly problem; more Week 12 thoughts
  • Eagles’ issues extend to defense in wire-to-wire Black Friday loss to Bears

    Eagles’ issues extend to defense in wire-to-wire Black Friday loss to Bears

    The Chicago Bears brought a piece of the Windy City to Philly and blew the Eagles away.

    On a gusty Black Friday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field, the visiting Bears got to work on the ground, pounding their way to a 24-15 victory. Vic Fangio’s defense turned porous as running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai combined for 255 rushing yards (130 for Monangai, 125 for Swift).

    Nick Sirianni and coaches struggle again as Eagles lose second straight with poor focus and fundamentals

    The Eagles offense, meanwhile, sputtered too frequently, going three-and-out on four possessions and committing two turnovers (one interception, one fumble). Kevin Patullo’s unit finished with just 51 plays (317 yards) to the Bears’ 85 (425 yards).

    Jake Elliott also struggled, missing an extra point attempt in the third quarter and a 52-yard field goal attempt in the waning seconds of the fourth.

    Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ fourth loss of the season, and second straight:

    Bears on the run

    The Bears won the time of possession game, especially in the first half, with their offense on the field for 21 minutes compared to just nine for the Eagles.

    Chicago’s offense dominated early, thanks to its running game, headlined by a running back duo of former Eagle Swift and Monangai. They combined for 7.2 yards per carry in the first half (129 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries).

    It was a happy homecoming for former Eagle and St. Joseph’s Prep product D’Andre Swift on Friday.

    Swift was particularly efficient on the ground, averaging 8.8 yards per carry through the first 30 minutes of the game. The St. Joseph’s Prep alumnus put the Bears up, 7-0, with just over a minute and a half remaining in the first quarter on a 3-yard touchdown run.

    He also was adept at forcing missed tackles, especially on the first play of the Bears’ third possession of the afternoon. Swift took a handoff from an under-center Caleb Williams, then scurried to the right for a 17-yard gain, leaving Adoree’ Jackson in his wake.

    “We’ve just got to be more violent,” Nakobe Dean said of the Eagles’ shortcomings against the run. “We’ve got to get off blocks. We’ve got to fit the run and like I said, that happens. And that’s with all 11, not just the D-line, not just the linebackers, not just the DBs. Everybody’s got to fit the run better.”

    Williams contributed on the ground, too, scrambling on third-and-5 to pick up a first down on the Bears’ third possession. However, the Bears got away from the running game briefly in the red zone, as Williams threw three straight incomplete passes. Chicago settled for a 30-yard Cairo Santos field goal and pulled ahead, 10-3.

    The Bears got back to the running game in the fourth quarter, as Monangai added another rushing touchdown to put Chicago up, 17-9. The running game became a focal point because both quarterbacks had their share of misses in the passing game.

    Jalen Hurts and the Eagles passing game had their moments against the Bears, but not enough of them.

    Williams went 17 of 36 (47.2%) for 154 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while Jalen Hurts went 19 of 34 (55.9%) for 230 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

    Williams sealed the Eagles’ fate with his 28-yard touchdown pass to tight end Cole Kmet late in the fourth quarter that made it 24-9.

    Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts has two turnovers; run defense porous vs. Bears

    Up-and-down offense

    While neither team thrived in the passing game, the Bears could at least run the ball. Saquon Barkley had some solid early runs, averaging 6.3 yards per carry in the first quarter, but the Bears defense tightened up and limited him to 4.3 per carry by the end of the game. Barkley finished with 56 yards on 13 carries.

    The Eagles’ passing attack couldn’t compensate for the lack of explosiveness on the ground. Hurts wasn’t always on the same page with his receivers, including a third-down incompletion to DeVonta Smith on a slant that forced the Eagles to settle for a 44-yard field goal.

    Hurts’ pass for Smith was slightly behind the 27-year-old receiver as he ran across the middle of the field. After the game, Hurts called the missed connection “two guys on two different pages.”

    “That’s a bit of the issues that we’ve kind of been having,” Hurts said. “We weren’t detailed enough in that. I wasn’t detailed enough in instructing him what to do, have him prepared, and making myself clear on that. So I’m trying to find as many particulars as I can when it comes to the level of execution we have and that’s a group effort that has to be there.”

    The field goal made it 7-3 in favor of the Bears. In the first half, the Eagles mustered just two first downs and 83 total yards, while the Bears amassed 16 first downs and 222 yards.

    Ex-Eagles safety Kevin Byard celebrated an interception of his former teammate Jalen Hurts in the third quarter.

    Ex-Eagle Kevin Byard’s third-quarter interception of Hurts continued the negative trend, but the Eagles offense showed a spark on the next possession — with a foolish Bears penalty helping the cause.

    Bears defensive lineman Gervon Dexter was flagged for a late hit on Hurts, moving the Eagles up 15 yards to their own 40. On the following play, Hurts had a rare designed run for 23 yards, bringing the Eagles to the Bears’ 33-yard line. On the ensuing play, Hurts hit A.J. Brown for a 33-yard touchdown pass, but Elliott missed the extra point to make it 10-9 Bears.

    That spark wasn’t enough. The next two Eagles possessions ended in a Hurts fumble and a three-and-out. They eventually turned it back on, reeling off a 12-play, 80-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter, capped by a 4-yard Brown touchdown catch and an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt.

    Turnover time

    Entering the game, the Eagles led the league with just six turnovers lost this season. The Bears, meanwhile, had forced a league-best 24 turnovers.

    The Bears won Friday’s turnover battle. Byard picked off Hurts early in the third quarter after the quarterback rolled out to his right while being pressured and launched a pass deep down the right sideline for Brown. Byard undercut the pass and snared his NFL-best sixth interception of the season.

    “I saw Kevin coming over and I knew there was a chance he was going to be able to make a play on the ball,” Hurts said. “Just was trying to give him a chance and throw it to the sideline where A.J. could try and make a play on it, and I wasn’t able to connect with him.”

    Luckily for the Eagles offense, the Bears failed to capitalize on Byard’s efforts. Williams was under duress up front on second and third downs, scrambling for no gain and throwing an incomplete pass intended for Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze to go three-and-out.

    Pass rusher Jalyx Hunt looked like the collegiate safety he once was on an interception of Caleb Williams in the second half.

    Later in the third quarter, Jalyx Hunt picked off Williams and returned the ball to the Bears’ 36-yard line. His play gave the Eagles offense excellent field position to try to pull ahead while they were down, 10-9.

    However, on third-and-1 at Chicago’s 12, Hurts fumbled on the Tush Push, a play that Bears head coach Ben Johnson previously denounced. Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright recovered the fumble, ending the Eagles’ attempt to go ahead. Hurts said he had hoped that his progress was stopped before the fumble, but the officials “didn’t blow the whistle as soon.”

    “That’s not to point the finger at anyone else,” Hurts said. “I’ve got to hold on to the ball.”

    This time, the Bears made the turnover count, as Monangai punched in a 4-yard rushing touchdown to cap a 12-play, 87-yard drive and put Chicago up, 17-9, early in the fourth quarter.

  • Philly is testing a new traffic pattern to help Eagles fans escape post-game gridlock

    Philly is testing a new traffic pattern to help Eagles fans escape post-game gridlock

    Teeth-chattering winds and plunging temperatures awaited Eagles fans who made a pilgrimage Friday to Lincoln Financial Field for a late afternoon matchup against the Chicago Bears.

    For those who drove to South Philadelphia, the city had a post-game surprise: a new traffic management plan that might minimize stadium complex gridlock.

    In an email to The Inquirer, the city wrote that the test pattern is designed to provide drivers with an expedited route from Pattison Avenue to the Walt Whitman Bridge and I-76 East, along Darien Street.

    Escape the Linc: The fastest way out of Lincoln Financial Field
    Eagles fans make their way to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia for the Eagles home opener on Thursday, September 4, 2025.

    The new pattern meant that fans who parked in the Q, R, V, W or X lots wouldn’t be able to access nearby Packer Avenue eastbound at 10th Street.

    Instead, motorists would be directed to alternative access points at Broad Street, Darien Street, or Front Street, the city said.

    The new approach Friday is an experiment, the city said, and feedback is welcome.

  • Eagles-Bears: Updated playoff picture, Richard Sherman blasts Birds play design, and more

    Eagles-Bears: Updated playoff picture, Richard Sherman blasts Birds play design, and more

    Thanks for nothing, Kansas City.

    The Eagles face the Chicago Bears on Black Friday still in the driver’s seat in the NFC East, but their magic number to clinch the division remains four games following the Dallas Cowboys’ Thanksgiving win against the Chiefs.

    It remains unlikely the Cowboys will be able to overtake the Eagles — even after Thursday’s victory, the New York Times gives Dallas a 3% chance to win the NFC East — but the division is suddenly a lot closer than it appeared just a few weeks ago.

    NFC East standings

    !function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}})}();

    Of course, the Eagles are playing for higher stakes than simply winning the division. Entering Friday’s game, the Birds hold the No. 2 spot in the NFC, with head-to-head wins against most of the conference’s top teams, including the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers, and Detroit Lions.

    The Birds can add the surprising Bears to that list today with a win, while a loss would knock the Eagles down to third place in the NFC with just five more games to go before the playoffs.

    The Lions put themselves in a bad position with their loss against the Packers on Thanksgiving. At 7-5, Detroit is suddenly on the outside of the playoffs looking in with a tough schedule that includes games against the Cowboys, Rams, and Bears.

    NFC playoff picture

    window.addEventListener(“message”,function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r,i=0;r=e[i];i++)if(r.contentWindow===a.source){var d=a.data[“datawrapper-height”][t]+”px”;r.style.height=d}}});

    Week 13: Bears (8-3) at Eagles (8-3)

    • Where: Lincoln Financial Field
    • When: 3 p.m., Friday
    • Streaming: Amazon Prime Video (Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit, Kaylee Hartung)
    • TV: Fox29
    • Radio: 94.1 WIP (Merrill Reese, Mike Quick, Devan Kaney)

    It shouldn’t be hard to watch or stream Friday’s game. In addition to simulcasting on Fox 29 in and around Philadelphia, Amazon is streaming the game for free globally on its Prime Video platform.

    Amazon’s Richard Sherman says Eagles play designs are ‘pretty pedestrian’

    Richard Sherman called the Eagles’ offense predictable and “pedestrian.”

    Last week, Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles called out the Eagles’ predictable offense, pointing to “simplistic” route designs that don’t create enough opportunities for wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith.

    “[Eagles offensive coordinator] Kevin Patullo is probably a great dude, a great coach, but there’s an art to play-calling that not everyone has and it’s not showing up this year,” Foles said.

    Richard Sherman agrees.

    The five-time Pro Bowl defender turned Thursday Night Football analyst said during a conference call earlier this week the design of many Eagles plays are “pretty pedestrian,” allowing defensive backs to “determine route combinations and route concepts” based on how the Birds line up.

    The Eagles have the 24th ranked offense in the NFL entering Friday’s game, among a handful of teams averaging less than 200 passing yards per game. Plus, Saquon Barkley isn’t coming close to repeating last year’s dominant 2,000-yard performance.

    “Do I think they can repair their offense? No, I don’t,” Sherman said. “I think Kevin Patullo’s the issue, and unless they replace him, nothing’s going to change. They’re going to go home” early in the playoffs.

    Ryan Fitzpatrick, Sherman’s colleague at Amazon who spent 17 seasons as an NFL quarterback, played with Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo during his time in Buffalo. Fitzpatrick said it’s up to Patullo and head coach Nick Sirianni to fix “some missteps,” with their receivers, including getting A.J. Brown ”on a few more out cuts” and “in the slot a little bit more.”

    “They’ve got to start in the second half of the season here, breaking some of those bad tendencies,” Fitzpatrick said. “Because you do fall in love with certain routes, with certain guys, because they’re such good players.”

    They got paid. They got Super Bowl rings. And now, the Eagles’ offense is unmotivated.

    NFL games airing in Philadelphia this weekend

    Sunday
    • Texans at Colts: 1 p.m., CBS (Ian Eagle, J.J. Watt)
    • Rams at Panthers: 1 p.m., Fox (Adam Amin, Drew Brees)
    • Bills at Steelers: 4:25 p.m., CBS (Jim Nantz, Tony Romo)
    • Broncos at Commanders: 8:15 p.m., NBC (Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth)
    Monday
    • Giants at Patriots: 8:20 p.m., ESPN/ABC (Joe Buck, Troy Aikman)

    Eagles-Bears live updates

    Staff writers Jeff McLane, Olivia Reiner, and Jeff Neiburg will be covering the action live on Inquirer.com.

    Notes and observations about the game can be found at Inquirer.com/Eagles. Don’t forget to subscribe to our free Sports Daily newsletter.

    Eagles-Bears: Live updates

    Eagles news

    Saquon Barkley is averaging just 62 rushing yards per game this season.

    Eagles 2025 schedule

  • They got paid. They got Super Bowl rings. And now, the Eagles’ offense is unmotivated.

    They got paid. They got Super Bowl rings. And now, the Eagles’ offense is unmotivated.

    The single greatest motivator in professional sports is not pride or love of the game or legacy. It’s money.

    The second greatest motivator: winning.

    When it comes to the Eagles, most of their offensive players seemed to have satisfied their appetite for both.

    They’ve won a Super Bowl. They’ve been paid. And now, faced with a demanding schedule, playing with the residual fatigue of three postseason runs, and with everyone getting a year older, they look like a shadow of what they should be.

    The Eagles don’t rank among the top half of the NFL’s teams in rushing offense, passing offense, or scoring. This, despite allotting just under $130 million of their salary cap on offense, more than twice the allotment on defense.

    Why? Simple.

    Eagles or Bears on Black Friday? Here’s a look at what the pundits are predicting.

    After the Eagles scored zero points for the final 41 minutes and blew a 21-0 lead at Dallas, running back Saquon Barkley said this:

    “They wanted it a little more.”

    Eagles linebacker Nolan Smith wraps up Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott in the second half of their game last Sunday.

    He hit the nail on the head, and he hit it as hard as any hole he’s hit all season.

    Something’s missing with the Eagles this season, especially with their offense. They lack desire. They lack motivation.

    What they do not lack is money.

    They’re 8-3, which isn’t bad, until you drill down and realize why they’re 8-3. They have three losses because they played flat all game against the Giants on Oct. 9 and because they didn’t show up for the second half on the road vs. Dallas (Denver, the other loss, actually is a pretty good team).

    That, as the Eagles host an 8-3 Bears team ravenous for relevance on Friday, is troubling.

    They’re smelling themselves, and we’ve seen this before.

    Just like the 2017 team that won Super Bowl LII with Doug Pederson, the Super Bowl LIX winners and Nick Sirianni are basking in the afterglow of the title. It’s hard to blame them because it’s hard to win it all, and when you’re set for life, and you’re wearing a $50,000 ring, it’s a little bit harder to hold that backside block or finish a decoy route.

    Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni kisses the Lombardi Trophy after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9.

    That’s the difference between dynasties and winners. Dynasties hold their blocks and finish their routes. Dynasties seek greatness for its own sake and are not weighed down by million-dollar pocketbooks.

    Barkley, wide receiver A.J. Brown, left tackle Jordan Mailata, left guard Landon Dickerson, right tackle Lane Johnson, and quarterback Jalen Hurts are playing on what likely will be their most lucrative contract. Some got new money after the Super Bowl win. None are playing to their expected level.

    The exception: wide receiver DeVonta Smith, who is on track for an excellent season.

    Meanwhile, on defense, linebacker Nakobe Dean, defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter, and corners Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean are playing like demons. Not coincidentally, all are playing on rookie deals and are due for big raises. The exception here: sixth-year linebacker Zack Baun, who cashed in on a career season and has been elite again. At any rate, after a rocky start, a midseason infusion of talent via trade, an unretirement, and a return from injury, the defense, which led the team to the title last season, is dominant again.

    The offense, meanwhile, has yet to deliver consecutive halves of proficiency against a good team. Former Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins this week suggested to Tim McManus of ESPN.com why the Eagles seem flat: “You just won a Super Bowl. So even though you go back to the starting line, in your mind, you are a Super Bowl-caliber team, and you think you deserve, almost, to get there, even if you don’t talk about it, you might say the right things internally.”

    Former Eagles player Malcolm Jenkins feels the afterglow of winning a Super Bowl has contributed to the Birds’ inconsistency this season.

    He wasn’t done dealing hard truths.

    “A lot of times, you lie to yourself. … Everyone in the sport tells you how good you are and why they expect you to do something. And then the season comes, and you realize that this season has nothing to do with last year,” Jenkins said. “I think the faster teams get to that truth, that they’re starting at zero and [not to] take anything for granted — I think those are the teams that can repeat, that can create dynasties, and that can stand the test of time.”

    One of the best barometers of efficiency is penalty count. The Eagles last season committed 103 penalties for 793 yards, which ranked 11th-fewest and fifth-fewest, respectively. Their 37 pre-snap penalties tied for seventh-fewest.

    Eagles vs. Bears: Predictions, odds, injuries, and what everyone’s talking about ahead of the Black Friday game

    This season, they rank 26th in total penalties against, 27th in total yards against, and 25th in pre-snap penalties against. It’s getting worse: They had 14 penalties at Dallas, the most since Sirianni took over in 2021.

    They are an accomplished, veteran team, but they’re playing like a rebuilding bunch of kids.

    Jenkins is one of the most qualified people on the planet to say what he said.

    He was one of the hardest-working, toughest, most resilient Eagles in history, and for that, he will be inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame on Friday, assuming these comments don’t put him in Jeffrey Lurie’s doghouse. Jenkins played six seasons in Philly, went to three Pro Bowls, was the team’s unquestioned leader, and, most significantly, won Super Bowls with both the Saints and the Eagles. Jenkins knows what a Super Bowl hangover looks like.

    Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, left, asserted that he felt both sides of the ball were working well in his team’s loss to the Cowboys.

    Sirianni pushed back on the assertion from Barkley.

    “I felt like, when I watched the tape, I saw the effort sky-high on both sides of the ball,” Sirianni said.

    Wonder who else was sky-high during that film session … or some of the others this season.

    Don’t forget: Nick got paid, too.

    Sirianni and his pithy axioms — great without the greatness of others, tough, detailed, together, flower power — have not been able to overcome this offensive malaise. Maybe there’s just too much, this time.

    The Birds have, in Brown, a wide receiver who, considering his words, actions, and social media posts, clearly is more interested in burnishing his Hall of Fame prospects than simply winning.

    They have, in Barkley, a running back who has stopped hitting the right holes and has started seeking the sideline — but at least he got a Wawa sandwich named after him. Consider, though, that Reggie Jackson hit 223 more homers after the “Reggie” bar came out. Saquon hasn’t hit a homer yet this year.

    Saquon Barkley appears far from the form that aided his breakthrough season for the Eagles last year.

    The offensive line, once a pack of stampeding rhinos bent on destroying linebackers on the second level, now can’t keep Barkley clean at the line of scrimmage.

    All of these are issues of effort, not execution.

    As Jenkins said, the Eagles themselves probably have not realized this. They had given no indication before Barkley’s confession on Sunday.

    What the film says about Saquon Barkley’s rushing struggles in 2025

    There’s a chance that the effort is the same. Maybe injuries have more to do with it than they’re letting on.

    Barkley missed a chunk of training camp with a groin injury that has flared again recently. Brown missed most of training camp with a hamstring injury that also cost him Week 8. Dickerson has endured three injuries so far, and Johnson was hurt twice before a foot sprain sidelined him indefinitely two weeks ago. Pro Bowl center Cam Jurgens missed two games with various ailments, and, after offseason back surgery, he hasn’t been anywhere close to 100% all year.

    Regardless, they’re not moving the ball.

    Jalen Hurts could benefit from the ferocity the Eagles’ offensive line delivered to him last season again.

    They can not afford to be this kind of team with a quarterback who is limited, as Hurts, whose unremarkable arm strength, slow release, and ponderous processing are only modestly offset by his speed, power, toughness, accuracy, and leadership. The rest of the offense has to operate at an extremely high level — holding those blocks, completing those routes, hitting those holes — to compensate for Hurts’ limitations.

    There’s a chance, too, that the culprit is fatigue. Between Super Bowl runs after 2022 and 2024, plus a playoff game after 2023, the Birds have played about two more months of football than every other team except Kansas City.

    And the Chiefs look pretty ragged, too.

    To the Eagles’ credit, most of the offensive players who got paid last year got paid before they won the Super Bowl. When the monetary incentive disappeared, winning was enough to fuel their fire.

    Now, though, they’ve won.

    What, if anything, fuels their fire today?

    Gameday Central: Bears at Eagles

    The Eagles enter Week 13 with an 8-3 record, holding first place in the NFC East and remaining among the conference’s top contenders. They’re looking to rebound after last week’s disappointing loss to the Cowboys. Join The Inquirer’s Olivia Reiner and Jeff McLane on Gameday Central for expert analysis, insider insights & live updates. Listen live.

  • Eagles vs. Bears predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 13

    Eagles vs. Bears predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 13

    The Eagles and Bears meet for a Black Friday afternoon game with playoff positioning at stake at Lincoln Financial Field.

    Can the Eagles bounce back after blowing a 21-point lead Sunday to the Dallas Cowboys on the road? Or will the upstart Bears pull off their signature win of the season?

    Here’s how our writers see Friday going:

    Jeff Neiburg

    Discount deals and Eagles football. Happy Black Friday to all.

    Perhaps Sunday’s result and the current trends of this Eagles offense don’t have you feeling festive for football this weekend. But fear not, the Eagles are touchdown favorites for a reason.

    These numbers show Saquon Barkley’s drop-off from his historic 2024 season with the Eagles

    Sure, the Bears are 8-3 after winning four consecutive games. But they’re doing the thing that teams do sometimes when they’re turning a corner after some down seasons: taking advantage of an easy schedule. Their win Sunday vs. the Steelers, 31-28, was their first against a team with a winning record.

    The offensive numbers with Ben Johnson in charge have been impressive, though. Chicago ranks 11th in expected points added/pass and eighth in EPA/rush, and that running success allows Caleb Williams to throw the third-highest percentage of play-action passes (31.3%) in the NFL. The Eagles have really struggled there, and Dak Prescott made them pay quite a few times.

    Why could Friday be different? The Eagles should be able to pressure Williams more than he usually is.

    Could this be the week when Saquon Barkley pops off in the running game?

    Flipping to the other side of the ball, it’s Chicago’s defense that gives the Eagles an advantage, especially considering the Bears are down multiple defensive starters. If there was a get-right game for the Eagles’ ailing running game, this is it. The Bears allow an average of 138.1 yards on the ground, fifth-worst in the NFL. They allow the second-most rushing yards per before contact per rush (2.01). I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Friday is Saquon Barkley’s second game over 100 yards.

    If not, and if the Eagles can’t get the running game going against this team, especially with its injuries, the problems plaguing them are more worrisome than we all thought. The run will open up the pass, and the Eagles won’t spoil your leftovers.

    Prediction: Eagles 30, Bears 17

    Olivia Reiner

    Much like last week, the Eagles shouldn’t underestimate the Bears, especially given the state of their offense right now. The Bears defense ranks near the bottom of the league in average yards against (363; No. 27), but they do certain things pretty well. They have a league-high 24 takeaways. (Former Eagles safety Kevin Byard and cornerback Nahshon Wright are tied for the league lead with five interceptions apiece.)

    They’ve also been the NFL’s best defense on third-and-long. The Eagles, meanwhile, have one of the worst third-down conversion rates overall (35%) and have a penchant for committing negative plays and penalties that put them behind the sticks.

    But in theory, the Eagles should be able to get the running game going against this Bears defense. Their linebacker corps is banged up. The Bears have given up 470 rushing yards over the last three weeks, the third-highest total in the NFL in that span. They’re conceding 5.3 yards per carry in that same time frame.

    What we know (and don’t) about the Eagles entering Week 13 vs. the Bears

    If the Eagles can’t run the ball on the Bears, it’s officially time to sound the alarm (if the red flags haven’t already been there). My faith in the Eagles’ rushing attack is dwindling, though, especially in the aftermath of Barkley’s 2.2 yards per carry against the Cowboys on Sunday. Barkley isn’t the only issue — the offensive line has been struggling to run block for him all season long.

    I had this game as a win for the Eagles before the season started. But given the state of the Eagles’ offense over the last few games, I’m picking a narrow upset.

    Prediction: Bears 30, Eagles 27