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  • After its Big Three moved on, St. Joe’s women’s basketball leadership has a decidedly Philly flair

    After its Big Three moved on, St. Joe’s women’s basketball leadership has a decidedly Philly flair

    Any good team is built on trust, and when two teammates have played together as long as Gabby Casey and Aleah Snead have, trust comes naturally at this point.

    Snead and Casey played AAU hoops together with the Philadelphia Belles and were members of the Philadelphia Belles Bluestar National Team in 2023. During that 2022-23 season, they also played against each other in high school, Casey at Lansdale Catholic and Snead at Penn Charter.

    Then, in the fall of 2023, Snead and Casey set off for their freshman season at St. Joseph’s.

    Now as juniors, the pair isn’t just playing together, they’re leading the Hawks together, in the box score and the locker room.

    “Trust takes time, and we’ve been together for so long, so now we trust each other on the court to make big plays for each other,” Snead said. “Even to be a leader. I trust Gabby in her opinion on everything.”

    Wherever you look on the St. Joe’s stat sheet, you’ll likely find Casey and Snead at or near the top. Casey leads the Hawks in scoring, (15.7 points per game), rebounds (6.9 per game), and steals (35). Snead follows directly behind her in each of the categories, averaging 10.9 points and 5.4 rebounds, and totaling 23 steals this season. Snead leads the team in minutes played, while Casey is just behind her.

    Saint Joseph’s guard Aleah Snead leads the team in minutes this season.

    Hawks coach Cindy Griffin said that the duo understands these individual accomplishments don’t come without collective success for the team, which currently is 12-5 (3-3 Atlantic 10). Griffin said Snead and Casey have “taken a lot on their shoulders” offensively and defensively for the Hawks, put in the day-to-day work at practices, and bring the team closer.

    After graduating two of its top players in Talya Brugler and Mackenzie Smith, and with a third, Laura Ziegler, transferring to Louisville, Griffin said Snead and Casey knew it was “their time to step up.”

    “This is their team,” Griffin said. “They felt like they were putting in the work, putting in the time, and [have] a true understanding of what that looks like. And both have stepped up tremendously.”

    Casey had a big jump last season and earned the Big 5’s Most Improved Player award. And as the A-10 Sixth Woman of the Year last year, Snead was no stranger to the “next player up” mentality, so it was only natural for the two to step into the role their teammates needed from them.

    With Brugler and Smith as examples, Snead said it was easy to pass on what she learned from them when assuming her leadership role.

    “I was a good follower, so becoming a leader myself was easy, and these people, my teammates, are easy people to lead on the court,” Snead said. “I just trusted myself and my ability to be able to support and make big plays for my team.”

    It helps to lead alongside Casey, someone she trusts and with whom she is comfortable. Casey said they know how to run the court together and play off each other, which their coach saw even before they were her players.

    Griffin’s youngest daughter, Hannah Griffin, played on the Philadelphia Belles with Snead and Casey, which allowed Griffin to get to know both the players and their families before they were Hawks.

    “When it was time for summer, you could see the bond between the two of them and just being able to complement one another,” Griffin said. “You can see it on the court. They look for each other, they find each other, they trust each other, and they know that each is going to show up for each other.”

    Snead and Casey were 1,000-point scorers in high school. Casey holds the program scoring record at Lansdale Catholic was MaxPreps’ Pennsylvania High School Basketball Player of the Year and the Gatorade Pennsylvania girls’ basketball player of the year her senior year.

    Casey and Snead were MVP of the Catholic League and Inter-Ac League, respectively, during the 2022-23 season, so both knew what it meant to play Philly basketball even before they arrived at St. Joe’s.

    “Being home is a fun place and environment to be in, so I kind of am spirited and wear that on my chest,” Snead said. “I’m from Philly, I’m playing in Philly, people are coming to see us, and that’s why I just try to tell my teammates too.”

    Gabby Casey (center) left Lansdale Catholic as the program’s all-time scoring leader.

    Griffin said with players from the area like Casey and Snead, there is an understanding of the grit and competitiveness that accompanies playing in the city.

    Casey experienced this during her time in the PCL, playing against other high school players with Division I aspirations.

    “I think that really just helped me with the physicality level and the speed that we were able to play at in high school,” Casey said. “Philly basketball is tough, and it’s competitive, and I think that it really helped me transition into college.”

    Now, that grit and competitiveness is helping to fuel the Hawks through the back half of the season, which Griffin said the team is taking one game at a time.

    St. Joe’s was picked to finish sixth out of 14 teams in the A-10, and Casey said the Hawks used that as a “spark plug” to help them catch some opponents off guard.

    But, ultimately, it comes back to trust, which starts with Casey and Snead.

    “We just come out like we have nothing to lose and just give our all every single game, and we just really trust each other on and off the court,” Casey said. “That helps as well, just knowing what we can get done on the floor and ultimately coming out with wins.”

  • Grok blocked from undressing images in places where it’s illegal, X says

    Grok blocked from undressing images in places where it’s illegal, X says

    BANGKOK — Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok won’t be able to edit photos to portray real people in revealing clothing in places where that is illegal, according to a statement posted on X.

    The announcement late Wednesday followed a global backlash over sexualized images of women and children, including bans and warnings by some governments.

    The pushback included an investigation announced Wednesday by the state of California, the U.S.’s most populous, into the proliferation of nonconsensual sexually explicit material produced using Grok that it said was harassing women and girls.

    Initially, media queries about the problem drew only the response, “legacy media lies.”

    Musk’s company, xAI, now says it will geoblock content if it violates laws in a particular place.

    “We have implemented technological measures to prevent the Grok account from allowing the editing of images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis, underwear and other revealing attire,” it said.

    The rule applies to all users, including paid subscribers, who have access to more features.

    xAI also has limited image creation or editing to paid subscribers only “to ensure that individuals who attempt to abuse the Grok account to violate the law or our policies can be held accountable.”

    The Associated Press confirmed on Thursday morning that the image editing tool was still available to free users on X using the “Edit image” button, as well as on the standalone Grok website and app. The tool was also able to generate images of people in bikinis on a free account based in California.

    Grok’s “spicy mode” had allowed users to create explicit content, leading to a backlash from governments worldwide.

    Malaysia and Indonesia took legal action and blocked access to Grok, while authorities in the Philippines said they were working to do the same, possibly within the week. The U.K. and European Union were investigating potential violations of online safety laws.

    France and India have also issued warnings, demanding stricter controls. Brazil called for an investigation into Grok’s misuse.

    The British government, which has been one of Grok’s most vociferous critics in recent days, has welcomed the change, while the country’s regulator, Ofcom, said it would carry on with its investigation.

    “I shall not rest until all social media platforms meet their legal duties and provide a service that is safe and age-appropriate to all users,” Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said.

    California Attorney General Rob Bonta urged xAI to ensure there is no further harassment of women and girls from Grok’s editing functions.

    “We have zero tolerance for the AI-based creation and dissemination of nonconsensual intimate images or of child sexual abuse material,” he said.

    California has passed laws to shield minors from AI-generated sexual imagery of children and require AI chatbot platforms to remind users they aren’t interacting with a human.

    But Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom also vetoed a law last year that would have restricted children’s access to AI chatbots.

  • NFL draft 2026: Who could the Eagles target with the No. 23 overall pick?

    NFL draft 2026: Who could the Eagles target with the No. 23 overall pick?

    The last time the Eagles picked in the early 20s range of the NFL draft was two years ago, when the team broke a 22-year streak of not selecting a defensive back in the first round. The player they selected was Toledo defensive back Quinyon Mitchell, who was recently named a first-team NFL All-Pro.

    After a disappointing end to their Super Bowl title defense, the Eagles head into the offseason with uncertainty at a few positions, but most of their core is intact.

    Could they add younger pieces to an offensive line that struggled? Add some youth to a tight end room that might be without Dallas Goedert next year? Or will the Eagles add to the secondary?

    With the Eagles locked into the No. 23 pick in the 2026 NFL draft, barring a trade, here are six players they could target:

    Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama

    Entering the 2025 college football season, Proctor, Alabama’s starting left tackle, had high grades from the NFL, but his uneven performances across 2025 have left his projection uncertain. Still, his athleticism at 6-foot-7, 366 pounds is hard to ignore, especially if teams project him as an interior player.

    Proctor has powerful striking power upon contact and is an aggressive run blocker who can create displacement in one-on-one and double-team blocks. He has flashed the ability to stop defenders in their tracks when he gets his hands on them in pass protection.

    The offensive tackle’s blocking technique is inconsistent, he plays with too high of a pad level at times, and he can too easily give up his outside shoulder on passing downs. Pairing Proctor with offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland could help the Alabama product become a more consistent player who could fit at either guard or tackle with his skill set along the Eagles’ O-line.

    Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon

    One of the more popular names you will hear for the Eagles during draft season is Sadiq, who is an incredible athlete at the tight end position who relishes doing the dirty work as a blocker in the run game.

    At 6-3, 245 pounds, Sadiq is unlikely to play as an attached tight end and will be coveted more for his receiving prowess. The Oregon standout, who finished the season with a team-high eight receiving scores, thrives working the seam and finding soft spots in zone coverage. His value in the red zone is noteworthy, with his ability to win vertically against secondary players and athleticism to catch passes in congested areas. According to Pro Football Focus, Sadiq caught 5 of 9 contested catch attempts.

    The tight end prospect needs to clean up his drops (six in 2025), become a more complete route runner, and is more of an insert and cutoff blocker rather than a player who will be asked to block defensive linemen one-on-one. But Sadiq would be a dynamic addition to the Eagles, who haven’t drafted a tight end in Round 1 since they took Keith Jackson at No. 13 overall in 1988.

    Caleb Lomu, OT, Utah

    Sticking with the theme of offensive linemen, Lomu, a redshirt sophomore, is a skilled pass protector with quick, nimble feet, recovery ability, and a player who can refit his hands when they’re knocked off by pass rushers. At 6-6, 308 pounds, Lomu has the athleticism to move in pass protection and live out on an island against speed and power rushers.

    Per PFF, Lomu has allowed just eight quarterback pressures and zero sacks across 383 pass blocking snaps. The Utah tackle’s play strength needs to improve, evidenced by his inconsistency maintaining run blocks and generating movement at the line of scrimmage.

    Lomu, though, could be the future for the Eagles at tackle, especially with Lane Johnson’s injury troubles this year. The prospect doesn’t have guard flexibility, but gives the Eagles a contingency plan for the 35-year-old Johnson’s inevitable retirement, whenever that occurs.

    Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia

    One name that is starting to get buzz within the draft community is Freeling, the Georgia left tackle who finished the season playing at a high level in the team’s biggest game, a playoff loss to Ole Miss. The 6-7, 315-pound lineman moves well blocking in space, does a nice job framing up his blocks in the run game, and rarely gets beat in pass protection.

    Freeling is fairly inexperienced relative to the other players on the list, having made just 17 starts in college, and has a tendency to lunge forward on blocks at times, but he would be a high-upside player who has a chance to be Johnson’s heir in a few years.

    Olaivavega Ioane, OG, Penn State

    There aren’t many interior offensive linemen worthy of a first-round pick, but Penn State left guard Ioane, a two-year starter, would be an ideal fit if the Eagles are looking to upgrade their interior.

    Ioane consistently creates running lanes with his physicality and torque at 6-4, 336 pounds, and has knock-back power in pass protection to keep interior pass rushers at bay.

    Despite the Nittany Lions’ disappointing season, Ioane was a bright spot, allowing just four pressures and zero sacks across 311 pass blocking snaps, according to PFF. He’s not an elite athlete, but has some movement ability in space. With the struggles in the interior from Eagles guards Landon Dickerson and Tyler Steen, Ioane could be an upgrade.

    Avieon Terrell, DB, Clemson

    If the Eagles decide to pair another early-round corner opposite Mitchell and keep Cooper DeJean in the slot, Terrell, the younger brother of Falcons corner A.J. Terrell, would be an ideal prospect to bring in. The Clemson defensive back didn’t have quite the same amount of ball production as his first two seasons, but was sticky in man coverage situations and forced five fumbles in 2025.

    Terrell is a smaller defensive back (5-11, 180 pounds) who struggles when matched up against bigger wideouts and tight ends. But he’s competitive at the catch point, has good zone-coverage instincts to close on routes developing in front of him, and has some nickel versatility to his game.

  • Want to be a professional boxer? The ‘TikTok of boxing’ is holding open tryouts — and you might even get on TV.

    Want to be a professional boxer? The ‘TikTok of boxing’ is holding open tryouts — and you might even get on TV.

    If you’ve ever thought about becoming a professional boxer, now may be your chance. The Team Boxing League will be hosting the first-ever televised open boxing combine at Bally’s Atlantic City this weekend (Jan. 16-18).

    “The last two years, when we did different tryouts in different cities, we would get a line around the block from the gym that we would do tryouts in,” said Team Boxing League CEO Kevin Cassidy. “So, we decided we would do kind of America’s Got Talent style, open casting call. And that’s how we got into it.”

    Fighters will compete for roster spots for the boxing league’s Season 4 lineup. Here’s what you need to know about the event …

    What is team-based boxing?

    The Team Boxing League is the nation’s first — and only — boxing league with a team-based model.

    Each bout features 24 three-minute rounds of non-stop fighting with competitors switching on and off after one-round matches.

    Each bout for the Team Boxing League features 24 three-minute rounds of non-stop fighting with competitors switching on and off after one-round matches.

    Each round is scored by three judges, who are licensed by a State Athletic Boxing Commission. A round is scored 10-9 for the winner of a judge’s decision, and if there’s a knockdown, it’s ruled 10-8. All 24 individual round scores are added up at the end, and the team with the highest total score gets the win.

    And that format makes for a unique fighting style.

    “It’s a little bit different in team boxing,” Cassidy said. “They train to go all out in one round. So, they could either fight one or two rounds in an event. That’s the most. It’s not like traditional boxing, where you have a couple of rounds where you’re feeling out the other fighter. This, you have 30 seconds to figure out the other fighter and then you have to go all out.

    “It’s the TikTok of boxing. It makes for excitement in all 24 rounds.”

    The TBL season begins mid-March and ends in September. They’ll host 56 events across the country, with 12 teams representing different cities — including the Philadelphia Smoke from the East Division.

    What to expect from the combine?

    This weekend’s three-day combine at Bally’s Traymore Ballroom will test each athlete’s endurance, strength, punching power, and accuracy through nine different stations.

    “They have different things for each,” Cassidy said. “They have rope drills and speed bags. And we have some technology that Bally’s developed for boxing which is going to test their hand speed and see how many uppercuts they throw. They’ll test their endurance, their fitness, their punching power, their coordination, all of those things.”

    Three-day combine for the Team Boxing League will be held at Bally’s Traymore Ballroom.

    How to watch

    All three days will be streamed live on the Team Boxing League app and an edited version will be broadcast on Envoy TV in February.

    “I’m looking forward to learning the stories of the fighters, their backgrounds,” Cassidy said. “We have fighters that come from a very diverse background. You have guys who have been to prison, police officers, firemen, construction workers.

    “There’s a lot of fighters around the country who never got a chance to make it and this gives them a lot of exposure.”

    Fighters can register for the TBL Boxing Combine Tryouts online.

  • Who’s next? Sizing up the Hall of Fame chances for four Phillies on the ballot.

    Who’s next? Sizing up the Hall of Fame chances for four Phillies on the ballot.

    Cole Hamels knew it for years, even before pitching his last major league game. Eventually, a day would come when his name appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot.

    Even so, there was something about actually seeing it.

    “When they do put your name on the ballot, they send you a letter,” Hamels recently told Phillies Extra, The Inquirer’s baseball podcast. “You can frame it.”

    Better yet, cast it in bronze, just like those plaques on the walls in Cooperstown, N.Y. Because although only one, maybe two former players on this year’s ballot will get elected Tuesday night and inducted this summer, all 27 had careers worth recognizing.

    Take, for instance, Hamels. He finished in the top 10 in his league in ERA six times in 15 seasons, 10 of which came with the Phillies. He ranks fourth in Phillies history in strikeouts (2,560) and sixth in innings (2,698). He was the MVP of the 2008 World Series and threw a no-hitter in 2015 in his final Phillies start.

    By every measure, a brilliant career.

    Yet Hamels’ name might be checked on fewer than one-quarter of the 400 or so ballots — and not the one cast by this voter. Hamels was polling at 31.1% as of Friday evening, according to industrious ballot collector Ryan Thibodaux’s tracker, more than the minimum 5% to stay on the ballot, far from the 75% for election.

    But here’s what makes baseball’s Hall of Fame special: the quality of the players on the 1-yard line, a Tush Push from getting in. (Too soon for the Eagles reference?)

    Consider that less than 24,000 players have made it to the majors, even for one day. A fraction of those stuck around for 10 years, the minimum requirement to be considered by the screening committee that annually puts together the Hall of Fame ballot.

    Whittle it all down, and only about 5% of all major leaguers see their name on that sheet of paper. And since the inaugural Hall class in 1936, a total of 279 players have been elected, only 137 on the writers’ ballot.

    “It’s not a disservice to anyone that doesn’t get that checkmark in any single year,” said Hamels, making his ballot debut this year. “They’re all some of the best baseball players that I was fortunate to play against.”

    Indeed, that’s helpful to remember when the results are announced at 6 p.m. Tuesday on MLB Network.

    Full disclosure: I voted for Carlos Beltrán, Félix Hernández, Dustin Pedroia, Andy Pettitte, and Chase Utley. Pedroia was the only addition to my ballot from last year. I strongly considered Hamels, in addition to David Wright, Andruw Jones, and Jimmy Rollins and might come around on some, or all, next year.

    Every voter has a threshold for where to draw the 1-yard line. Over the years, my tendency has been to favor players who had a big peak, even if they lacked the longevity of classic Hall of Famers. Hernández, Pedroia, and Utley fall into that category.

    For observers of the Phillies, it was another loaded ballot, with four candidates — Bobby Abreu, Hamels, Rollins, and Utley — who spent the bulk of their careers with the team. Howie Kendrick and Hunter Pence briefly played for the Phillies; Kendrick works for them as a special assistant.

    Let’s dive into the Hall of Fame candidacies of the four longtime Phillies, from the most to the least likely to eventually get elected.

    Chase Utley received nearly 40% of the vote last year in his second appearance on the Hall of Fame ballot.

    Chase Utley

    Years on the ballot: Three

    2025 vote total: 39.8%

    The writers haven’t elected a player with fewer than 2,000 career hits since Ralph Kiner in 1975.

    Utley finished with 1,885.

    But Utley appears to be trending toward eventual election, likely because of the height of a peak that lasted at least six seasons and, if you squint, as many as 10. From 2005 to 2014, he had a 127 OPS+ and ranked second among second basemen in extra-base hits behind Robinson Canó, who was suspended twice for failing a drug test. Utley also had the second-most wins above replacement of any player, trailing only Albert Pujols.

    Utley made a healthy ballot debut (28.8%) in 2024, then got an 11-point bump last year. Without a strong first-year candidate, he’s set for his biggest leap yet, tracking above 60% in early returns, although players don’t tend to fare as well among voters who don’t make their ballot public.

    Second basemen are historically underrepresented in the Hall of Fame. The writers have elected only two (Craig Biggio and Roberto Alomar) since 2006. Jeff Kent was elected last month by an era committee after topping out at 46.5% in 10 years on the writers’ ballot. Maybe it will help Utley and Pedroia with the writers.

    Utley already got to almost 40% in only his second go-around. His statistics won’t change, but voters’ perspectives often do. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Utley climb over 50% this year and get the call to Cooperstown sometime around, oh, 2028.

    Cole Hamels worked for the Phillies this year as a guest instructor in spring training and a part-time television analyst.

    Cole Hamels

    Years on the ballot: One

    Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Pedro Martínez, Randy Johnson, and John Smoltz went into the Hall of Fame in a two-year parade of starting pitchers in 2014 and ’15.

    Since then, the writers have elected only three starters.

    Roy Halladay, Mike Mussina, and CC Sabathia will be joined in five years by Clayton Kershaw and eventually by Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Maybe Zack Greinke, too. But beyond that group, who’s the next surefire Hall of Fame starter?

    At a time when teams ask less of their starters than before, in an age of reduced workloads and an arm-injury epidemic that has shortened careers, starters no longer reach the classic benchmarks — 300 wins, 3,000 strikeouts, etc. — that the all-time greats once did.

    It has been reflected in Hall of Fame voting. Johan Santana had a six-year peak with two Cy Young Awards and five top-five finishes but dropped off the ballot after one year because he apparently wasn’t dominant for long enough.

    Voters appear to be recalibrating. Hernández’s peak lasted slightly longer than Santana’s and featured one Cy Young and two runners-up. He appeared on 20.6% of ballots as a first-time candidate last year and was tracking at better than 50%.

    It’s difficult to assert that Hamels’ career, which didn’t include a top-three Cy Young finish, reached King Félix’s heights. But check out their numbers from 2007 to 2016:

    • Hamels: average of 208.2 innings, 126 ERA-plus, 46.5 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference.
    • Hernández: average of 214 innings, 129 ERA-plus, 47.2.

    It’s close. Fortunately, Hamels will get additional consideration. He’s going to hang around on the ballot, maybe even topping Hernández’s first-year total.

    Jimmy Rollins is the Phillies’ all-time leader with 2,306 hits.

    Jimmy Rollins

    Years on the ballot: Five

    2025 vote total: 18.0%

    Rollins’ significance to the Phillies would be undeniable even if he wasn’t their all-time hits leader. He was a soothsaying league MVP in 2007 and a World Series champion in 2008, and authored one of the biggest postseason hits in team history in the 2009 NL Championship Series.

    The Phillies’ 143-year story can’t be written without their best shortstop.

    But many Hall of Famers were franchise icons. Should every franchise icon be a Hall of Famer?

    The writers didn’t vote in Dale Murphy and Don Mattingly, whose excellence symbolized an era for the Braves and Yankees, respectively. Lou Whitaker didn’t get into the Hall of Fame after 19 starry seasons with the Tigers.

    And thus far, J-Roll hasn’t gotten much traction either.

    Despite sharing the middle infield with Utley for a dozen seasons, Rollins hasn’t matched his double-play partner’s ballot momentum. He debuted at 9.4% in 2022 and made only modest increases: 12.9% in 2023, 14.8% in 2024, and 18% last year. He’s tracking at about 23%, which would signal another small bump.

    Rollins’ supporters within the electorate often note that he’s the only shortstop ever with at least 2,000 hits, 200 homers, and 400 steals. He also won a league MVP, four Gold Gloves, and a World Series ring.

    But it’s difficult to ignore Rollins’ below-league-average OPS+ (95), although it wouldn’t be the lowest ever for a Hall of Fame shortstop (Phil Rizzuto, Ozzie Smith, Luis Aparicio, and Rabbit Maranville were worse).

    Bobby Abreu spent half of his 18 year major-league career with the Phillies.

    Bobby Abreu

    Years on the ballot: Seven

    2025 vote total: 19.5%

    Twenty-one players had at least 900 extra-base hits and 1,400 walks. Here’s the list: Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mel Ott, Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Eddie Mathews, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Carl Yastrzemski, Pete Rose, Mike Schmidt, Barry Bonds, Gary Sheffield, Frank Thomas, Jim Thome, Jeff Bagwell, Chipper Jones … and Abreu.

    Good company, right?

    Yet Abreu somehow always seemed more like a supporting actor. He spent half his 18-year major league career with the Phillies but played for six teams. The Phillies won the World Series two years after he got traded; the Yankees won it one year after he left as a free agent.

    Abreu built on a 5.5% debut in 2020 but has plateaued in recent years — 15.4% in 2023, 14.8% in 2024, 19.5% last year. Through Wednesday, he had picked up 12 votes and was polling at about 40%.

    It would represent a decent jump for Abreu. But with only three more years on the ball, he needs a bigger leap to stand a chance at even sniffing 75%.

  • 🦅 Offseason questions | Sports Daily Newsletter

    🦅 Offseason questions | Sports Daily Newsletter

    Who will be the Eagles’ next offensive coordinator is one of the biggest storylines surrounding the team this offseason.

    But during the end-of-year press conference on Thursday, another topic rose that will have an impact on that coordinator and the Eagles as a whole.

    A.J. Brown’s future in Philadelphia and Lane Johnson’s future playing football in general seem to carry some uncertainty.

    The star receiver has expressed his frustrations with the offense and his involvement this season. He also declined to speak to the media after the Eagles’ postseason loss, both after the game and again the following day as the team cleared its lockers.

    Would Howie Roseman be open to trading Brown?

    “It is hard to find great players in the NFL, and A.J. is a great player,” Roseman said. “I think from my perspective, that’s what we’re going out and looking for, when we go out here in free agency and in the draft, is trying to find great players who love football, and he’s that guy. So that would be my answer.”

    And regarding Kevin Patullo’s removal as offensive coordinator, Nick Sirianni explained his decision as a need for the offense to “evolve” and in the best interest of the team.

    Though, Sirianni didn’t outright fire the 44-year-old coach. For now, Patullo remains on staff. Sirianni said he will “see how it plays out.”

    Another question that seemed to spark after the Eagles got bounced from the playoffs in the first round is what exactly does Sirianni do?

    Roseman, unprompted, listed those responsibilities.

    The narrative that Sirianni was just a figurehead propped up by Roseman and his coordinators has hung over his tenure — even after winning a Super Bowl. But it has gained steam again.

    — Isabella DiAmore, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

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    Who’s next?

    From left: Former Phillies Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Cole Hamels, and Bobby Abreu are all on the Hall of Fame ballot.

    What makes baseball’s Hall of Fame special? The quality of the players on the 1-yard line, a Tush Push from getting in. (Too soon for the Eagles reference?). Less than 24,000 players have made it to the majors. A fraction of those stuck around for 10 years, the minimum requirement to be considered by the screening committee that annually puts together the Hall of Fame ballot. Whittle it all down, and only about 5% of all major leaguers see their name on that sheet of paper.

    But it’s another loaded ballot for the Phillies with Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Bobby Abreu, and Cole Hamels. Let’s examine the Cooperstown case for each before the results are announced on Tuesday.

    What we’re …

    🤔 Wondering: This season wasn’t all bad for the Eagles. Here are the winners of the 2025 superlatives.

    🥍 Learning: Subaru Park will host the inaugural Women’s Lacrosse League Championship this summer.

    📖 Reading: The biggest storylines in women’s soccer includes Trinity Rodman’s future with the Spirit.

    ‘Love in the air’

    The Sixers’ Jabari Walker passes the ball off as Cleveland’s De’Andre Hunter (center) defends. Hunter is a Philly native and former Friends’ Central School star.

    As soon as De’Andre Hunter had dropped his bags at the Cleveland Cavaliers’ hotel in Philly on Tuesday, he headed to Dalessandro’s Steaks. Hunter relished being back in front of family and friends inside Xfinity Mobile Arena Wednesday night, where he finished with 17 points, four rebounds, and four assists off the bench.

    Hunter, a Friends’ Central School graduate, credits “love in the air” for his standout showing as the Cavaliers thrashed the Sixers.

    Injury woes

    Aleksei Kolosov has been clear that he wants to play in the NHL. He’ll likely get another chance after being called up Thursday.

    Things seemed to be looking up for defenseman Jamie Drysdale, who was set to return to the lineup on Wednesday night in Buffalo. But just a few short hours later, the injury bug resupplied its stinger. Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is also listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, after being a full participant at morning skate.

    And the Flyers are still awaiting tests results on the severity of Dan Vladař’s injury from a loss against the Sabres. In the meantime, the Flyers recalled goalie Aleksei Kolosov from Lehigh Valley.

    However, those injuries seemed to make a difference against the Penguins, as the Flyers suffered their fifth straight loss.

    Sports snapshot

    “Philly basketball is tough and it’s competitive, and I think that it really helped me transition into college,” St. Joe’s junior guard Gabby Casey said.

    David Murphy’s take

    Eagles general manager Howie Roseman offered unsolicited and lavish praise for Nick Sirianni on Thursday.

    There isn’t a whole lot of literal truth you can glean in most press conference settings. That’s especially true in the NFL. The Eagles are about to embark on an offensive coordinator search that could see them bring in a number of big name former head coaches who have their own schemes and, potentially, their own assistant coaches. But Howie Roseman made it a point to share his forceful vote of confidence in Nick Sirianni. It speaks volumes that Roseman took advantage of the opportunity, and that he did it forcefully, writes columnist David Murphy.

    What you’re saying about your favorite rivalry

    We asked: What’s your favorite rivalry? Among your responses:

    The best sports rivalry of all time is Army-Navy. Nothing else even comes close. — Doug R.

    There’s been a few throughout my 86 years. The absolute No. 1 will always be the Cowboys / Eagles. Regardless of our record as long as we beat Dallas all is good. Followed by the Flyers / Rangers, Phillies / Mets, 76ers / Celtics, and Villanova / St. Joe. — Ronald R.

    Eagles and Cowboys for sure. My family is divided almost down the middle. That makes things interesting at times. — Tom G.

    Growing-up in the 70’s, high school basketball in Lower Bucks County featured a fierce rivalry between Bristol High School and Holy Ghost Prep. Bristol, a small public school who won the PIAA State Championship in 1975 and a Holy Ghost, private school powerhouse. — Bob C.

    When I was a young kid in Springfield Delco I would walk from my house up to the high school every season to see the Springfield vs Marple Newtown Thanksgiving rivalry. And later in life the Army Navy rivalry was always tops to me. I always rooted for Army, but then when I joined the Navy I of course switched. When I lived in Southern California I enjoyed the intense football rivalry between USC and UCLA. Now one of the most intense Philly rivalries is between the Mets and our Phillies. — Everett S.

    West Philly vs. Overbrook — William D.

    Born in Philly but now in Durango, Co. Before Dgo I was in Tucson, Az. for 15 years. I don’t think I ever witnessed a more bitter rivalry than my Az. Wildcats vs. the ASU “Scumdevils”.It is truly a bitter, unfriendly rivalry. On the Philly side, my dad took me (a 15 year old sophomore) to Franklin Field to see The Birds play the NY Giants. This was the game after Concrete Charlie cleaned Frank Giffords “clock”. Wat a show in the stands between NYG fans and Philly fans. It remains a great rivalry today. Dave S.

    We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Olivia Reiner, Jeff Neiburg, Jeff McLane, David Murphy, Scott Lauber, Jackie Spiegel, Ariel Simpson, Gabriela Carroll, Gina Mizell, Jonathan Tannenwald, Ryan Mack, Mia Messina, and Colin Schofield.

    By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.

    Thanks for reading! Hope you have a wonderful and restful weekend. Jim will be back in your inbox on Monday to get your week started. — Bella

  • The Big Picture: Eagles are eliminated, Cavan Sullivan hits the field, and our best sports photos of the week

    The Big Picture: Eagles are eliminated, Cavan Sullivan hits the field, and our best sports photos of the week

    Each Friday, Inquirer photo editors pick the best Philly sports images from the last seven days. This week, however, isn’t just about the end of the Eagles’ season — it’s also about turning the page and remembering there’s more to life than just football. We’ve got photos of Joel Embiid and the Sixers, Matvei Michkov and the Flyers, and Cavan Sullivan and the Union returning to the practice pitch.

    And, yes, there are pictures of the Eagles’ game — but maybe Saquon Barkley’s adorable kids can soften the blow …

    The Eagles’ loss Sunday was their first home playoff loss under Nick Sirianni.
    Eagles running back Saquon Barkley gets a kiss from his daughter Jada before Sunday’s wild-card game against the 49ers.
    Eagles offensive tackle Fred Johnson started eight games this season in place of an injured Lane Johnson.
    Next season will be Jalen Hurts’ fourth straight with a new offensive coordinator after Kevin Patullo was removed from the position this week.
    The Eagles have made the playoffs in each of the five years under Nick Sirianni, but lost in the wild-card round three times. The other two years they went to the Super Bowl.
    49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, who finished second in the NFL in yards from scrimmage, scored a pair of touchdowns against the Eagles on Sunday.
    Former Eagles defensive tackle Fletcher Cox was one of several former Birds on hand for Sunday’s game against the 49ers.
    The giant American flag made an appearance ahead of Sunday’s game, despite heavy wind gusts at the Linc,
    Joel Embiid and the Sixers will look to bounce back from Wednesday’s loss to the Cavaliers with another game against Cleveland on Friday.
    Gabby Casey and the Saint Joseph’s Hawks beat the La Salle Explorers, 69-60, at Hagan Arena on Saturday.
    The Flyers have lost five straight games, including a pair to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
    Cavan Sullivan and the Union opened their training camp in Chester this week.
    The Flyers have been outscored 25-8 during their current five-game skid.
    Matvei Michkov had scored just one goal since Dec. 1 before scoring Thursday night against the Penguins.
    During the five-game losing streak, the Flyers have fallen out of playoff position.
  • What does Nick Sirianni do? A lot, says Howie Roseman, despite Eagles’ frequent offensive resets.

    What does Nick Sirianni do? A lot, says Howie Roseman, despite Eagles’ frequent offensive resets.

    Unprompted, Howie Roseman listed Nick Sirianni’s responsibilities and accomplishments.

    Normally, a head coach one year removed from winning a Super Bowl, who has taken his team to the title game twice, and to the postseason in each of his first five seasons, wouldn’t need to be publicly lionized by his general manager.

    But these aren’t normal times and not in Philadelphia. The Eagles got bounced from the playoffs in the first round and the expectations that have risen from recent success — in part because of Sirianni — have helped foster a distorted reality that has been amplified by a culture increasingly shaped by contrarianism, algorithms, and conspiracy.

    Roseman heard several questions about the Eagles’ next offensive coordinator when he felt compelled to jump in. He knew where the inquiry was going having sat in the same seat two years ago when Sirianni’s authority seemed diminished and he was asked essentially: What is it exactly that you do here?

    The narrative that Sirianni was just a figurehead propped up by Roseman and his coordinators has hung over his tenure — even after winning a championship. But it gained steam again after he removed Kevin Patullo as coordinator on Tuesday, and the question of who will replace him and how much Sirianni will be involved in the offense remains unanswered.

    There is truth to the notion that the selection of a pedigreed play-caller who has previously been a head coach — Mike McDaniel and Brian Daboll are among the top candidates on the list — will make Sirianni more powerless, perhaps put him on the hot seat as early as next season if things go poorly. Roseman might have been anticipating that narrative when he spoke on Sirianni’s behalf during Thursday’s end-of-season news conference.

    “I’ve got a lot of things that I’d like to say about Coach and the job that he’s done here,” Roseman said.

    He then proceeded to spell out what he thought Sirianni, as a CEO-type coach, was “elite” at doing: “Building connections with our team, … talking about fundamentals, game management, situational awareness, bringing the team together, holding people accountable.”

    The GM continued: “When you’re looking for a head coach, those are really the job descriptions. As you’re building out a coaching staff, you’re talking about being able to do that, being able to have elite play callers on both sides of the ball, and when you think about how hard it is to find those three things and that we have one, I mean, we’re starting with a huge advantage.”

    To Roseman’s point, it would be true to say neither McDaniel nor Daboll came remotely close to doing what Sirianni has done as head coach.

    McDaniel, who was fired by the Miami Dolphins over a week ago, and Daboll, who was fired by the New York Giants in November, will get some interviews for one of nine head coach vacancies. But they are more likely to be coveted by teams in search of a coordinator.

    How much Sirianni is willing to cede authority could dictate how attractive the Eagles job is to the prospective contenders. Roseman’s statement that the coach has given previous hires “the flexibility to put their own spin on things” made it obvious he would give as much autonomy as he does to defensive coordinator Vic Fangio — if need be.

    Sirianni, for his part, didn’t divulge much about what he’s looking for and how much will change in terms of his involvement and a new scheme.

    “Those decisions don’t have to be made for a long time and, as the head coach, you always have to be oversight of everything,” Sirianni said. “Again, this year obviously I got involved more on the offense as the end of the season came because that’s what I needed to do as the head football coach there. Many different ways to do it.

    “I know that I want to be the head football coach and I think that that’s what the team needs.”

    But even though he gave up play-calling midway through his first season as coach, and more of his system after coordinator Brian Johnson was fired two years ago and Kellen Moore was brought in as his replacement, the offense has remained relatively the same throughout.

    At least since Sirianni decided to abandon some of the scheme he brought with him from Indianapolis and cater his offense more to quarterback Jalen Hurts’ skill set, which meant more emphasis on the run game.

    The offense evolved over time and was most explosive in 2022 when the Eagles first reached the Super Bowl. But then-coordinator Shane Steichen left to take the Colts’ head job, and running it back again in 2023 didn’t work with Johnson at the controls.

    Two years ago, when Sirianni sat in the same chair and was asked about the next coordinator and his involvement, he said there would be a “meshing” of systems. The Eagles hadn’t yet announced Moore’s hiring, but they had zeroed in on him.

    This year, they aren’t as far along because the news conference came earlier than two years ago. They have also cast a wider net. Roseman will lead the search. Owner Jeffrey Lurie and his son Julian, recently appointed to a formal role within the organization, will also be in the interviews, per a team source. Sirianni will be in the meetings too, but it is apparent that the senior members of the front office will be making the final call.

    There don’t appear to be any restrictions, but the Eagles will likely lean toward proven commodities. It has been suggested that they hire an offensive Fangio who no longer has head coaching aspirations because they previously lost Steichen and Moore to promotions.

    “It’s a great compliment when guys get head coaching jobs from here because it means we’re having tremendous success,” Roseman said. “As much as you’d like to have continuity and would like to have guys here for a long period of time, we want to win. We have an urgency to win right now.”

    But the offense clearly needs a reset. Two years ago, Sirianni said the offense had gotten “stale” and that he wanted to bring in “new ideas.” This year, he said the scheme needs to “evolve.” The Eagles were again at the lower end of being under center, using motion, and throwing over the middle of the field. They ran more hitch routes than any other team.

    From 2022-24, they had one of the NFL’s best offenses, despite not necessarily being at the vanguard of modern offense. But they took a significant step back in 2025 for a variety of reasons. Patullo struggled as a play-caller, but he also took the brunt of the blame because he was the new piece.

    Hurts and others got off easier. Sirianni and Roseman, as expected, mostly praised the quarterback when asked about his performance this season.

    “We all had a hand in our offense this year,” Sirianni said. “Good, bad, you name it, we all had a hand in it. That’s every coach, every player, myself obviously at the front of that list.”

    Sirianni said it would be “foolish” not to have Hurts involved in the coordinator search, but he also mentioned including other players in the same breath. Two of those players — wide receiver A.J. Brown and tackle Lane Johnson — may not even be on the roster for different reasons.

    Roseman called Brown “a great player” when asked about trading the receiver who is still under contract, but he didn’t directly answer the question. And he declined to give an update on where Johnson, who turns 36 in May, stands on possible retirement.

    Hurts isn’t going anywhere. He’s been the one main constant in the offense since the beginning. Any good coach revolves his schemes around his players, but never more so than at quarterback.

    It’s unclear how much Hurts kept the offense from evolving this season — or even doing what it did well previously in terms of him running — but Sirianni said the 27-year-old quarterback will be open to change.

    “I think you saw this year that he’s open to do a bunch,” he said. “We were under center probably more than we have been. Different motions, different things like that. Here’s what I’ll say: Jalen’s proved this to everybody, that he’ll do whatever it takes to win football games. Sometimes that’s throwing it a bunch, sometimes that’s running it a bunch, sometimes it’s him handing it off a bunch.

    “He’ll do whatever it takes to win.”

    Eagles general manager Howie Roseman (left) offered unsolicited and lavish praise for Nick Sirianni on Thursday.

    But that was far from good enough this season, at least on the offensive side of the ball, despite the Eagles having the most expensive unit in the league. There will be a balancing of sorts in the offseason through the draft. The offensive line may undergo some retooling.

    The defense will lose some parts, but young, homegrown talent will eventually need to be paid. Roseman, who like Sirianni had faced doubters despite winning a title, knows how to rebuild a roster. Both said the Eagles were in win-now mode.

    But the GM knew what kind of pressure that would place upon the coach, who has yet to win over a vocal segment of the fan base, and even himself. So he offered a parting clarification.

    “I think it’s important for our fans to understand, you can do whatever it takes to win now and still build for the future and still have those parallel paths,” Roseman said. “I just don’t want it to get confused that we can’t do whatever it takes to build a championship-caliber team next year and also continue to have really good players on this team for the future.

    “I just want to make sure that we’re on the same page on that.”

    Good luck with that.

  • What’s open and closed in the Philly area on Martin Luther King Day 2026: Grocery stores, postal services, trash pickup, and more

    What’s open and closed in the Philly area on Martin Luther King Day 2026: Grocery stores, postal services, trash pickup, and more

    Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday honoring the civil rights leader’s legacy, is Monday and it brings with it changes to schedules across the Philadelphia region. From government offices and post offices to trash collection and banks, many services will operate on adjusted hours or close entirely.

    Here’s what you need to know so you can plan your Monday with confidence.

    GROCERY STORES

    Acme Markets

    ✅ Acme Markets locations will be open for normal hours. Check your local store’s hours at local.acmemarkets.com.

    Whole Foods

    ✅ Whole Foods will be open during normal business hours. Check your local store’s hours at wholefoodsmarket.com/stores.

    Giant Food Stores

    ✅ Giant locations will be open regular hours. Check your local store’s hours at giantfoodstores.com/store-locator.

    South Philly Food Co-op

    ✅ South Philly Food Co-op will be open during its normal hours.

    Sprouts Farmers Market

    ✅ Sprouts will be open regular business hours.

    Trader Joe’s

    ✅ Trader Joe’s stores will be open.

    Aldi

    ✅ Aldi will be open for normal hours. Use the store locator at aldi.us/stores/ to check your local store’s hours.

    Reading Terminal Market

    ✅ Reading Terminal Market will be open.

    LIQUOR STORES

    Fine Wine & Good Spirits

    ✅ Fine Wine & Good Spirits will be open. Check your local store’s hours on the Fine Wine & Good Spirits store locator online.

    MAIL AND PACKAGES

    U.S. Postal Service

    ❌ Post offices are closed and the USPS will not be delivering regular mail.

    UPS, FedEx, and DHL

    UPS services will operate normally.

    FedEx will work regular hours, except for FedEx Express and Ground Economy.

    DHL will operate as normal.

    BANKS

    ❌ TD Bank, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Chase bank will be closed.

    PHARMACIES

    CVS

    ✅ CVS locations will operate on normal business hours. Call your local store before visiting or view its hours at cvs.com/store-locator/landing.

    Walgreens

    ✅ Walgreens locations will be open for regular business hours. Check your local store’s hours at walgreens.com/storelocator.

    TRASH COLLECTION

    ❌ There is no trash or recycling pickup on MLK Day. But trash pickup will resume a day later than scheduled. To find your trash and recycling collection day, go to phila.gov.

    BIG BOX RETAIL

    Target

    ✅ Target locations will be open for regular business. Check your local store’s hours at target.com/store-locator/find-stores.

    Lowe’s

    ✅ Lowe’s stores are open for normal business hours. Check your local store’s hours at lowes.com/store.

    Home Depot

    ✅ Home Depot locations will be open during normal business hours. Check your local store’s hours at homedepot.com/l/storeDirectory.

    SHOPPING MALLS

    ✅ The Shops at Liberty Place, Fashion District Philadelphia, Franklin Mall, Cherry Hill Mall, and King of Prussia Mall will be open for their regular hours.

    TRANSIT

    SEPTA

    ✅ SEPTA subways, trolleys, buses, the Norristown High Speed Line, and Regional Rail will run on a regular Monday schedule. Visit septa.org.

  • Americans take their heroes where they can get them, but they should look past Philly’s sheriff | Shackamaxon

    Americans take their heroes where they can get them, but they should look past Philly’s sheriff | Shackamaxon

    This week’s column talks about heroes with feet of clay, SEPTA’s starts and stops, and America’s 250th birthday celebrations.

    No one’s hero

    Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal is having her 15 minutes of fame this week, with her comments at a news conference alongside District Attorney Larry Krasner spreading across social media. After the killing of Renee Good by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis, Krasner stated that he would hold federal officers accountable for any violation of the law. Bilal warned that the feds “don’t want that smoke” and called ICE “fake wannabe law enforcement.” She even scored an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett.

    That’s all well and good, but there’s one big problem with Bilal’s position: The sheriff ultimately has no ability to protect Philadelphians from ICE.

    Despite her title and natty uniform, it is Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel who serves as the city’s top law enforcement official, not Bilal. This is a good thing because the sheriff’s track record is disastrous.

    Despite running for the office in 2019 as a reformer, Bilal began her tenure by firing Brett Mandel, her chief financial officer, just five weeks into his tenure. Mandel had flagged her use of what he described as a slush fund. A longtime good government advocate, Mandel objected to using city funds to pay for things like parking tickets and six-figure media consulting contracts.

    Things haven’t improved in the years since. Bilal was publicly criticized by the city’s judges for her failure to protect courtrooms, turning over foreclosure sales to an online operator with little notice, covering up the theft of a department-issued vehicle, one of her deputies was caught selling guns illegally, and her office wasted nearly $10,000 on a new mascot no one asked for. The list goes on, yet city officials have mostly steered clear of criticizing the sheriff for her missteps.

    While Bilal was basking in the media spotlight of talking tough against ICE, Bethel was not amused. Given Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s clear strategy to avoid poking the orange bear, Bilal’s comments forced the commissioner to make clear in a statement that it is the Philadelphia Police Department that runs law enforcement in the city, not the sheriff.

    If people are looking for a genuine local hero in the national crisis over immigration enforcement, why not opt for Keisha Hudson instead? Hudson, who leads the local Defenders Association, has put together a new unit specializing in immigration cases. An immigrant from Jamaica herself, Hudson has both the right job and the right life experience to help residents who have been mistreated by ICE.

    Bilal, on the other hand, can’t even keep ICE from turning the courts she’s responsible for into a hunting ground for the feds.

    Eagles fans wait for a Broad Street Line train at City Hall station.

    The wheels on the bus

    During the yearslong debate over transit funding in Pennsylvania, one consistent drumbeat is that SEPTA needed to become more efficient if it wanted to get more support.

    Of course, SEPTA already does more with less when compared with other major agencies, with cost-per-ride lower than in Boston and Washington, D.C. Additionally, trying to save money can sometimes cost agencies in the long run, or at the very least cost scarce political capital.

    In fact, most of the current crises SEPTA faces are the result of trying to save money or insufficient political will. For example, better capitalized agencies would have replaced the Regional Rail fleet a decade or so ago. Meanwhile, the weekslong closure of the trolley tunnel happened because the agency tried using a new part — in the hope that it would be replaced less frequently and cost less.

    Perhaps the Broad Street Line felt left out of the chaos because operations there have become a new pain point for riders. The 1980s Kawasaki trains are well-built. They are also nearly 45 years old. When I first started at The Inquirer five years ago, then-SEPTA General Manager Leslie Richards told me she hoped to avoid replacing the trains until the 2040s. Recent issues on that line make me question that timeline.

    For weeks, the trains have struggled with mechanical issues. Riders have reported jam-packed trains that have been forced to skip stops, line adjustments, and other delays. According to a spokesperson, door faults and general vehicle malfunctions have contributed to the problems.

    It all came to a head at the end of Sunday’s Eagles game.

    After a door issue disabled a train near Snyder Station, already dejected fans were forced to wait until 9 p.m. to catch a ride home. SEPTA is spending $5 million to upgrade the traction motors, which should help. What’s really needed, however, are new trains.

    Historical interpreters (from left) Benjamin Franklin, Gen. George Washington, and President Abraham Lincoln stand with other audience members for the Presentation of the Colors, as the U.S. Mint unveils new coins for the Semiquincentennial at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia in December.

    Let’s get this party started

    The United States is celebrating a big one this year. America’s big 250th birthday party is here … can you tell?

    I can’t. While big events like the World Cup are planned for later this year, there is currently little to indicate that 2026 is any different from 2025. The patriotic bunting that sprouted all over Philadelphia during the Civil War and the Centennial has yet to appear.

    Still, help is on the way. City and state officials announced an $11.5 million initiative to remove graffiti, plant flowers, and otherwise beautify the city.

    At that price, we should probably do it every year.