Tag: endliveblog

• What you should know
• The Eagles (11-6) will face the San Francisco 49ers (12-5) Sunday at 4:30 p.m. on Fox in the wild-card round of the playoffs. Here’s the full wild-card schedule.
• Eagles have a tough playoff road, as few No. 3 seeds have made it to the Super Bowl.
• Nick Sirianni defended his decision to rest his starters with the No. 2 seed on the line. The Birds backups didn’t exactly inspire confidence and the Eagles offense looked inadequate.
• What our columnists think: Mike Sielski on Sirianni’s controversial decision | Marcus Hayes on Tanner McKee | David Murphy on the Birds facing the 49ers

// Timestamp 01/05/26 5:02pm

Will Tank Bigsby see more time in the playoffs?

Resting the regulars meant Tank Bigsby got the start at running back with Saquon Barkley on the sideline.

Bigsby has flashed in his limited role as a backup, and he showed Sunday why some are clamoring for more of him.

Bigsby rushed 16 times for 75 yards and a touchdown. He also turned a check-down completion into a 31-yard gain, making Washington’s Jordan Magee miss with a nifty cut in the process. Bigsby, however, played just two snaps in the fourth quarter and did not have a touch after the third quarter during the 24-17 loss.

“He runs hard,” Nick Sirianni said. “He’s got extremely good ability to make you miss while also being able to put his shoulder down and finish runs through contact.

“The way he walks through, the way he practices, it really does show up in the game with how hard he runs and how hard he plays.”

Perhaps the Eagles will feature more of him, especially if they find success on the ground vs. a weakened San Francisco front seven.

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 01/05/26 4:42pm

49ers are paying the price for not resting their starters

One team had a meaningful game with a lot on the line and a lot of things in their control. The other had a meaningful game with a lot on the line and only some things in their control.

The Eagles, the latter team mentioned above, elected to go the conservative route and rest most of their regulars. The San Francisco 49ers, meanwhile, played a big game in prime time Saturday and lost at least one starter for the playoffs in the process.

Of course, had the Eagles been in situation where a win guaranteed them the No. 2 seed in the NFC, Nick Sirianni would have made a different decision than the one he made for Week 18 vs. Washington.

As it happens, the decision may have cost the Eagles a chance at a second home playoff game, but what it did guarantee was the Eagles entering the wild-card weekend with the healthiest roster they could have. It was an extra week for right tackle Lane Johnson and linebacker Nakobe Dean to continue working toward their returns from foot and hamstring injuries, respectively. It was a day off for Jalen Carter to give his ailing shoulders a break. Jaelan Phillips got to rest his ankle injury. Dallas Goedert got to stay off his knee.

The 49ers, meanwhile, lost starting linebacker Tatum Bethune to a season-ending groin injury during their loss to Seattle. San Francisco remains without star linebacker Fred Warner, who is unlikely to be ready until at least the NFC championship game. Two other linebackers, Dee Winters (ankle) and Luke Gifford (quad), will be evaluated this week for their injuries.

San Francisco was also without star left tackle Trent Williams for their game Saturday. He is dealing with a hamstring injury, and the 49ers really struggled offensively without him, though the Seahawks have one of the best defenses in the NFL.

Johnson, the Eagles’ star tackle, seems to be trending toward returning for the postseason. Dean’s status remains unclear. But the Eagles could start their postseason run Sunday with all of their active-roster regulars ready for action.

“I think it’s always a fine line of there’s two things that need to happen,” Sirianni said Monday. “You got to have your players available, and you do different things to make sure that happens throughout the year. But it is so important that you continue to get better as the season goes on.

“Our guys know how to practice. They know how to practice efficiently. So we’ve had a tendency of getting better while also having guys healthy.”

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 01/05/26 3:33pm

Niners will be without LB Tatum Bethune Sunday

// Timestamp 01/05/26 2:49pm

Watch: Nick Sirianni speaks to reporters

// Timestamp 01/05/26 2:19pm

Eagles early favorites vs. 49ers in wild-card round

The Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers in the wild-card round of the playoffs after they missed out on the No. 2 seed.

The Birds ended the regular season with with a loss to the Commanders, settling for an 11-6 record to go with their NFC East title. Meanwhile, the 49ers finished with a 12-5 record after their recent loss to the Seattle Seahawks, but had to settle for a wild-card spot.

Now, both teams will meet at Lincoln Financial Field as they try to keep their Super Bowl hopes alive, and the Eagles are early favorites over the Niners in their first-round matchup.

FanDuel

• Spread: 49ers +3.5 (-105); Eagles -3.5 (-115)
• Moneyline: 49ers (+176); Eagles (-210)
• Total: Over 46.5 (-108); Under 46.5 (-112)

DraftKings

• Spread: 49ers +3.5 (-110); Eagles -3.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: 49ers (+170); Eagles (-205)
• Total: Over 45.5 (-112); Under 45.5 (-108)

— Ariel Simpson

// Timestamp 01/05/26 12:13pm

Cardinals fire ex-Eagles coach Jonathan Gannon

Jonathan Gannon is the fourth head coach to lose their job on Black Monday

The Arizona Cardinals announced they have parted ways with Gannon, who they hired away from the Eagles in 2023 under a five-year deal that ran through the 2027 season and drew allegations of tampering resolved by swapping draft picks.

The former Birds defensive coordinator went just 15-36 (.294) in three seasons with the Cardinals, and his team was completely uncompetitive in the NFC West (0-6). In fact, the Cardinals lost more games last season (14) than the rest of the NFC West combined (13).

As Peter King put it in his weekly newsletter, “He’s a defensive coach, and they gave up 37 points a game in their last five games. Is that a team playing hard for the coach?”

To add insult to injury, the team wished Gannon a happy birthday on social media Sunday.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 11:52am

Dolphins interested in Eagles’ assistant GM: NFL Network

// Timestamp 01/05/26 11:29am

Raiders fire Pete Carroll after just one season

Three NFL coaches have been fired on Black Monday, and it isn’t even noon yet.

Pete Carroll joined the ranks of the unemployed Monday, with the Las Vegas Raiders announcing they parted ways with their 74-year old coach.

“We appreciate and wish him and his family all the best,” Raiders owner Mark Davis said in a statement.

Carroll’s team tied for the NFL’s worst record (3-14), and the Raiders had already fired offensive coordinator (and former Eagles coach) Chip Kelly during the season.

The move also means Davis will be paying three former coaches who are no longer with the team — Carroll, Antonio Pierce, and Josh McDaniels. The team was also forced to pay Jon Gruden an undisclosed lump-sum after he resigned in 2021 due to an email scandal.

Notably, Tom Brady — who will be called the Eagles’ wild-card game on Fox Sunday — will be part of the Raiders’ search for a new head coach.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 11:23am

Peter King calls Eagles’ decision to rest starters a ‘missed opportunity’

Add longtime NFL writer Peter King to the list of pundits who think Nick Sirianni made a mistake by resting his starters with the No. 2 seed on the line.

King, in a weekend newsletter, called the decision a “missed opportunity” for the Eagles and pointed out why the No. 2 seed offers a much easier path to the Super Bowl than the No. 3 seed.

“If you’re the 2 seed and you win the Wild Card game, you’re home for two playoff games,” King wrote. “If you’re the 3 seed and the 2 seed wins the Wild Card game, you’re home for only one playoff game.”

94.1 WIP morning show co-host and former Eagles fullback Jon Ritchie was more blunt Monday morning.

“It was a mistake,” Ritchie said. “The fact you could have had the easy path, and instead you completely forfeited that opportunity… this team has the players to win a Super Bowl if the path is the right path, and we forfeited that possibility.”

Sirianni defended his decision to reporters following Sunday’s loss, saying it came down to what he felt was best for the team and his players.

“The one thing I could guarantee was giving them rest,” Sirianni said. “I couldn’t guarantee anything else.”

“Going into the playoffs healthy is a big deal for us,” Sirianni added.

Inquirer columnist Mike Sielski agreed, writing the Eagles got some rest and “eliminated any risk they’d be shorthanded to a significant degree” against the San Francisco 49ers.

“Do the Eagles have a harder road back to the Super Bowl now? Maybe, but not necessarily,” Sielski wrote. “The defending champs let everything play out, and now they really get to take their chances, to show that being healthy and healed up is a bigger advantage than anything they might have gained from treating Sunday’s game like their season depended on it.”

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 10:48am

Jalyx Hunt pulled off a first in the Eagles’ 93-year history

If Jalyx Hunt looked like a defensive back breaking on Josh Johnson’s sideline throw intended for Deebo Samuel on Sunday evening, you can thank his background as a safety, the position he originally played in college at Cornell before transitioning to the defensive line at Houston Christian.

Hunt’s interception was his third of the season and separated him from what was a four-way tie for the team lead with two interceptions.

It also put him in the Eagles’ history book. For the first time since the Eagles were established in 1933, the same player led the team in interceptions and sacks. Hunt’s two sacks in Buffalo last week gave him a team-high 6½ sacks on the season.

Hunt, a third-round pick in 2024, also became the second player in franchise history to post 6-plus sacks and 3-plus interceptions in the same season. Seth Joyner did it twice, in 1991 and 1992.

“He’s living good,” Zack Baun said of Hunt. “He’s doing something in his life that karma is just treating him right.

“He’s super impressive. Thinking about his transition in positions in college and high school, it’s insane. Got to give credit to guys like that that work really hard to put themselves in good positions and then, at the end of the day, it pays off for them.”

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 01/05/26 10:10am

Rest for some Eagles regulars… but not all

There were varying reasons for who played Sunday and who didn’t, who played sparingly and who played more.

The Eagles, for example, decided to let DeVonta Smith play nine snaps and catch three passes on four targets for 52 yards so he could get the 44 yards he needed to reach 1,000 yards on the season. Nick Sirianni said the Eagles were “safe with him as far as what kind of routes we were running and what he was doing.”

Smith exited the game after his third catch.

Some Eagles got the entire night off. Safety Reed Blankenship said he was looking back with no regrets after the Eagles rested their starters and squandered a chance at the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

“I’d rather have a week of rest and let my body recover than go out there and be in a dog fight and then feel bad going into a playoff game,” he said.

For some other Eagles regulars, Sunday was almost a normal day.

Jalyx Hunt played 52% of the 69 defensive snaps, Moro Ojomo played 51%, and Jordan Davis 49%. There was a healthy dose of Byron Young (78%) and Ty Robinson (74%) on the interior, but defensive line isn’t a position where the Eagles could rest everyone. Even 37-year-old Brandon Graham played 28 snaps, 21 more than he played a week earlier.

“The plan was that you rotate on the defensive line,” Sirianni said. “To keep somebody in there and just make them go the whole time, that’s not how D-line play works. You always want to have fresh bodies in there and so we knew they would play into the fourth and we tried to limit their reps as best as we possibly could by giving the other guys some more reps, but we knew that we would have to play them the whole time through because just the way the nature of that position works.”

The other regulars who played Sunday were right guard Tyler Steen and tight end Grant Calcaterra, both of whom played 28 snaps. Backup tackle Fred Johnson, who has been filling in as a starter for Lane Johnson, played all 64 offensive snaps.

— Jeff Neiburg

// Pinned

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:29am

NFL playoff schedule: Birds playing Sunday afternoon

The first round of the NFL playoffs begins this weekend, with the No. 3 Eagles hosting the No. 6 San Francisco 49ers Sunday afternoon at the Linc at 4:30 p.m. on Fox.

Kevin Burkhardt will be in the booth alongside Tom Brady, who will be calling his sixth Eagles game this season. It will also be his fourth Birds playoff game, which included last year’s Super Bowl victory against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Fox is broadcasting two wild-card games this weekend, while CBS, NBC, and ESPN each get one.

One game will also stream exclusively on Amazon’s Prime Video, which just finished up its fourth season as the home of Thursday Night Football.

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The No. 1 Seattle Seahawks will face the lowest-remaining NFC seed in the divisional round. Same goes for the No. 1 Denver Broncos in the AFC.

Full 2025-26 NFL playoff schedule

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

Where is this year’s Super Bowl?

Super Bowl LX (or 60, for those who don’t like Roman numerals) is being held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., home of the San Francisco 49ers.

NBC will broadcast this year’s Super Bowl, with Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth on the call.

Here are the sites announced for future Super Bowls:

• Super Bowl LXI: Feb. 14., 2027, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif. (ESPN, ABC)
• Super Bowl LXII: Feb. 2028, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta (CBS)

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 9:51am

Surprisingly few No. 3 seeds have made it to the Super Bowl

There are a lot of opinions about Nick Sirianni’s decision to rest the Eagles starters in Sunday’s loss, especially after the Chicago Bears’ loss opened the door for the Birds to land the No. 2 seed.

But that’s all academic now. The Eagles will enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed, a position that’s produced a surprisingly small amount of Super Bowl teams.

Wharton professor Deniz Selman crunched the numbers. Since 1975, when the current playoff seeding began, just five No. 3 seeds have made it through the playoffs and ended up in the Super Bowl. By comparison, 55 No. 1 seeds, 24 No. 2 seeds, and 11 No. 4 seeds have made it to the big game.

The most recent No. 3 seed to advance to the Super Bowl was the Kansas City Chiefs, who made it to Super Bowl LVIII in the 2023 season and defeated the No. 1 San Francisco 49ers.

The last time a No. 3 seed in the NFC made it all the way to the Super Bowl was the Carolina Panthers in 2003, when they went on to lose to the New England Patriots.

The Eagles were the No. 3 seed in 2013, but lost to the New Orleans Saints in the wild-card round at the Linc. They also didn’t advance past the wild-card round as a No. 3 seed in 2010, while in 2006 their postseason run ended in the divisional round.

The Birds made it to the NFC Championship game as the No. 3 seed during the 2001 playoffs, but lost to the then-St. Louis Rams 29-24 when Aeneas Williams intercepted Donovan McNabb with less than two minutes remaining.

Here are the five NFL teams that entered the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and advanced to the Super Bowl:

• 1979: Los Angeles Rams lost Super Bowl XIV
• 1987: Washington won Super Bowl XVIII
• 2003: Carolina Panthers lost Super Bowl XXXVIII
• 2006: Indianapolis Colts won Super Bowl XLI
• 2023: Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl LVIII

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 9:15am

Browns fire head coach Kevin Stefanski

The Cleveland Browns fired Kevin Stefanski Monday morning, becoming the fourth NFL team this season to part ways with their head coach.

The former NFL Coach of the Year (an award he won twice) and a Philadelphia native, Stefanski’s sixth season with the Browns was a disappointment. While the Browns have a history of burning through head coaches (12 since 2000), Stefanski’s three playoff games was the most for the franchise since Marty Schottenheimer’s tenure during the mid-1980s.

Overall, Stefanski went 45-56 (.446) with the Browns, the franchise’s best winning percentage since Bill Belichick’s short tenure in Cleveland in the early 1990s (not counting the eight games Gregg Williams served as the team’s interim coach in 2018).

Expect most teams with a head coaching vacancy, including the New York Giants, to have interest in Stefanski, who is just 43.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:48am

This will be the third time the Eagles and 49ers have met in the playoffs

The Eagles enter the playoffs as the NFC’s No. 3 seed. They could have been the No. 2 seed, but things didn’t quite work out that way.

They will open the playoffs at home against a 49ers team that is coming off a sloppy loss on Saturday in its third game in 13 days. San Fran’s offense scored just three points.

The Eagles and 49ers have met twice previously in the postseason. San Fran shut out the Birds, 14-0, in a muddy wild-card game at the old Candlestick Park after the 1996 season. Three years ago, the Eagles thumped San Fran, 31-7, in the conference championship game.

Niners quarterback Brock Purdy was a rookie that season. He got hurt on the first possession, and the 49ers had an uphill climb.

Coincidentally, he was replaced that day by Josh Johnson, who on Sunday led Washington to a win over the Eagles, which knocked the Eagles out of the conference’s No. 2 seed and set up the meeting next weekend with the 49ers. Small world.

Purdy had been red-hot until Seattle shut him down in a 13-3 Seahawks win on Saturday. In the three games prior, he had 11 TD passes and two interceptions.

This will be his seventh postseason start. He’s thrown one interception in 171 playoff passes, and San Fran is 4-2 with losses to the Eagles and the Chiefs.

— Ed Barkowitz

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:25am

Eagles injury report

• Offensive tackle Lane Johnson hasn’t played since suffering a Lisfranc sprain in his foot back in Week 11. He’s expected to return to the team for Sunday’s wild-card game, per the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
• Safety Brandon Johnson, who started alongside Sydney Brown, injured his ankle while attempting to pick off a deflected pass in the second quarter.
• Tight end Grant Calcaterra hurt his ankle and knee on a hip-drop tackle from Reaves in the third quarter.
• Offensive lineman Brett Toth was evaluated for a concussion in the fourth quarter and did not return to action.
• Other players dealing with injuries include defensive tackle Jalen Carter (hip), linebacker Nakobe Dean (hamstring), linebacker Jaelan Phillips (ankle), tight end Dallas Goedert (knee), and safety Marcus Epps (concussion).

— Olivia Reiner, Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:20am

Eagles 2026 opponents

While the 2025 season is still going on for the Eagles, we now know all the Birds’ opponents for the 2026 season.

Their final opponent was decided Sunday night. Not only did the Pittsburgh Steelers win the AFC North and punch the final ticket to the playoffs, they’ll now face the Eagles at the Linc in 2026.

The Eagles also face the first-place teams in the NFC South (Carolina Panthers) and AFC North (Pittsburgh Steelers), and will play every team in both the AFC South and the NFC West, which sent three teams to the playoffs this season.

The Birds are scheduled to play nine home games next season, which increases the likelihood we’ll see the Eagles in an international game. That could include a return to Brazil or hosting a game in Munich, Mexico City, or London.

• Home games: Dallas Cowboys, Washington Commanders, New York Giants, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers
• Away games: Dallas Cowboys, Washington Commanders, New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Chicago Bears

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:15am

Falcons kick off Black Monday on Sunday by firing Raheem Morris

Black Monday, the NFL’s annual send off of underperforming head coaches, kicked off Sunday night in Atlanta.

The Falcons fired both general manager Terry Fontenot and head coach Raheem Morris, despite Atlanta finishing the season on a four-game winning streak and tied for first place in the NFC South with an 8-9 record.

“I have great personal affinity for both Raheem and Terry and appreciate their hard work and dedication to the Falcons, but I believe we need new leadership in these roles moving forward,” Falcons owner Arthur Blank said in a statement.

Two NFL coaches were fired during the regular season: Brian Daboll with the New York Giants and Brian Callahan with the Tennessee Titans.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:10am

Photos of Eagles’ loss to Commanders

Eagles 2025 schedule

• Week 1: Eagles 24, Cowboys 20
• Week 2: Eagles 20, Chiefs 17
• Week 3: Eagles 33, Rams 26
• Week 4: Eagles 31, Buccaneers 25
• Week 5: Broncos 21, Eagles 17
• Week 6: Giants 34, Eagles 17
• Week 7: Eagles 28, Vikings 22
• Week 8: Eagles 38, Giants 20
• Week 9: Bye week
• Week 10: Eagles 10, Packers 7
• Week 11: Eagles 16, Lions 9
• Week 12: Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
• Week 13: Bears 24, Eagles 15
• Week 14: Chargers 22, Eagles 19
• Week 15: Eagles 31, Raiders 0
• Week 16: Eagles 29, Commanders 18
• Week 17: Eagles 13, Bills 12
• Week 18: Commanders 24, Eagles 17

// Timestamp 01/05/26 7:05am

• What you should know
• The Eagles eked out a 13-12 win against the Buffalo Bills Sunday and remain in the hunt for the NFC’s No. 2 seed. Here is the updated NFL playoff picture and how Monday’s Rams-Falcons game could impact the Birds.
• The inconsistency of the Eagles offense won’t be resolved until the offseason, writes Jeff McLane.
• Eagles grades: Jalen Hurts was silenced in second half, but Jalyx Hunt had a breakout game on defense.
• Eagles just might muddle their way to another Super Bowl, writes columnist David Murphy. Even Skip Bayless thinks the Birds are Super Bowl bound.
• The Eagles will end their season against the Washington Commanders at the Linc on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. The game will air on CBS. Here’s the full Week 18 schedule.

// Timestamp 12/29/25 3:40pm

Nick Sirianni undecided on playing starters vs. Commanders

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni was — as expected — noncommittal about whether he will let his starters loose for Sunday’s season finale vs. the Washington Commanders.

“It’s not a decision I have to make today or even tomorrow,” Sirianni said Monday, a day after the Eagles’ 13-12 victory over the Buffalo Bills kept them alive for the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

The Eagles need to win, and have Chicago lose vs. Detroit, in order to get the No. 2 seed and a guarantee at a second home playoff game should they win their first. The second seed also presents a more favorable matchup vs. seventh-seeded Green Bay.

“Things are still up in the air as far as seeding goes,” Sirianni said. “It’s pretty similar to where we were last week.”

The Eagles, of course, played their starters Sunday.

“We’ve done it both ways,” Sirianni said. “We’ve had opportunities to rest; we’ve had opportunities to continue to get a better seed and played.

“You go through your process, but every season is a little bit different, every team is a little bit different. We’ll end up doing what we think is best for the team.”

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/29/25 2:42pm

Watch: Nick Sirianni speaks as playoffs approach

// Timestamp 12/29/25 1:56pm

Despite win, Eagles’ Super Bowl odds drop

The Eagles have fallen to the fourth spot in the race to win the NFC championship, according to both FanDuel and DraftKings. The Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks remain in the top two spots. Meanwhile, the San Francisco 49ers have dethroned the Eagles for the third spot, making it an all NFC West top three.

FanDuel

• Rams: +280
• Seahawks: +290
• 49ers: +440
• Eagles: +450
• Bears: +900
• Packers: +950

DraftKings

• Seahawks: +270
• Rams: +270
• 49ers: +450
• Eagles: +500
• Bears: +900
• Packers: +950

Despite dropping one spot among NFC teams, the Eagles’ odds actually remained the same. The same cannot be said for their Super Bowl odds, which have fallen at both sportsbooks.

At FanDuel, the Birds remain in the top five — sitting below the Denver Broncos and tied with the 49ers. At DraftKings, they’re outside of the top five. The Rams and the Seahawks remain the favorites to win the big game.

FanDuel

• Rams: +490
• Seahawks: +600
• Broncos: +800
• Eagles: +900
• 49ers: +900
• Bills: +1000

DraftKings

• Rams: +475
• Seahawks: +500
• Broncos: +750
• Patriots: +900
• 49ers: +950
• Eagles: +1000

— Ariel Simpson

// Timestamp 12/29/25 1:47pm

Eagles stats: Dallas Goedert sets a franchise record, and other notable numbers

The final score in Orchard Park, N.Y., 13-12 Eagles, was an interesting one. It was no Scoragami, though. While Sunday was the first 13-12 game of the 2025 season, it marked the 22nd game in NFL history with a 13-12 final, according to The Football Database.

The Eagles previously won a game by the same score on Oct. 26, 1997 at home vs. Dallas.

While the score may not have been terribly unique, there were some pretty rare numerical occurrences to come from the Eagles’ victory.

Let’s start with the bad stuff (Why not? It’s a dreary Monday).

Here’s a funny one: The Eagles failed to complete a pass in the second half Sunday for the second time this season. Yet, somehow, the Eagles are 2-0 in those games. Hard to believe.

Here’s another one from Eagles numbers guru Deniz Selman: The Bills picked up the last 14 first downs of the game Sunday and still lost. It’s unclear how often that has happened in NFL history, if ever at all. The Eagles ran 17 plays for 17 yards in the second half before Jalen Hurts’ kneeldown.

“Hey,” Hurts said to Nick Sirianni after the game, “a win’s a win.”

The win was the Eagles’ 11th of the season, marking the fourth consecutive season the Eagles have reached 11 or more victories. That’s the second-longest streak in franchise history (they did it five consecutive times from 2000 to 2004).

Here are some other notable numbers from Sunday:

• Sirianni earned his 65th win and moved past Greasy Neale into second place for wins by an Eagles head coach. He trails Andy Reid (140) and has a long way to go.
• According to Elias, only three head coaches in NFL history have produced 11-plus wins in four of their first five seasons with a franchise: Sirianni, Reid, and Tony Dungy.
• Dallas Goedert’s 11th touchdown of the season set a new franchise record for tight end touchdown catches.
• Since Week 13, the Eagles lead the NFL with 20 sacks after they brought Josh Allen down for five on Sunday.
• The Eagles have forced a turnover in eight consecutive games and are tied with Chicago for the longest active streak. It is the longest streak by the Eagles since they forced a turnover in 11 consecutive games in 2022.
• A.J. Brown has a franchise-record fourth consecutive season with 1,000 or more receiving yards. Brown is one of four NFL players with 1,000-plus receiving yards every year since 2022 (Ja’Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb and Amon-Ra St. Brown).
• Jake Elliott became the second player in franchise history (David Akers) to reach the 1,000-point club.

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/29/25 1:10pm

How ESPN’s Joe Buck is keeping track of the playoff picture tonight

It’s going to be a wild Week 18, with four divisions up for grabs (NFC West, NFC South, AFC North, AFC South) and both No. 1 seeds undecided.

Over at ESPN, Joe Buck is calling the Monday Night Football matchup between the Los Angeles Rams and Atlanta Falcons, and shared his messy playoff cheatsheet for tonight’s game:

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 1:02pm

‘Going into the playoffs, I like what I see’

The Eagles entered Sunday’s game as slight underdogs after coming off two wins over mediocre teams with losing records: the 2-14 Las Vegas Raiders and the 4-12 Washington Commanders. One of the biggest concerns heading into their Week 17 matchup was how they would the look against a playoff team, one with reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen at quarterback.

After the win, former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy admitted that he liked what he saw from the Eagles as they prepare to head into the postseason.

“Everything favored the Buffalo Bills,” McCoy said on The Speakeasy podcast. “Who got dominated though, physically? If you watch the game, turn the volume down and just watch the game, we were beating the [expletive] out of them — physical, up front.

“On offense, I don’t like this though. I don’t like that once we get a lead, a comfortable lead, it’s like we put our foot off the gas. Why? It’s OK we’re blowing people out. It’s OK we’re putting 30 on their head. I think we get so conservative and the only thing [we focus on is] let’s get the win. … I’m happy, I think we can clean that stuff up. But, going into the playoffs, I like what I see.”

— Ariel Simpson

// Timestamp 12/29/25 12:05pm

Dallas Goedert at FB?

// Timestamp 12/29/25 11:43am

Tonight’s Rams-Falcons game will help decide Eagles’ first playoff opponent

Which team the Eagles face in the first round of the playoffs will ultimately be decided by what happens in Week 18. But a Los Angeles Rams loss Monday night to the Atlanta Falcons would eliminate the possibility the Eagles will face the Seattle Seahawks first in the postseason.

Here is a breakdown of the Eagles’ potential seeding and wild-card opponents, excluding ties:

• No. 2 Eagles vs. No. 7 Packers: Eagles win vs. Commanders AND Bears loss to the Detroit Lions (8-8)
• No. 3 Eagles vs. No. 6 Rams: Eagles loss or Bears win AND Rams lose one of their final two games
• No. 3 Eagles vs. No. 6 49ers: Rams win vs. Cardinals AND Seahawks win vs. 49ers
• No. 3 Eagles vs. No. 6 Seahawks: Eagles loss or Bears win AND Rams win their final two games AND 49ers win vs. Seahawks

The math in the NFC West is pretty easy. The winner of Week 18’s matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Seahawks Saturday night will end up claiming the NFC West crown and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Rams had an outside chance at claiming the division, but were officially eliminated from contention by the 49ers’ win Sunday night. Now the best Los Angeles can do is the No. 5 seed.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 10:14am

Two wild stats from Eagles-Bills game

The Eagles were one Bills two-point conversion away of blowing a big win in Buffalo Sunday night.

That didn’t happen without some weird stuff occurring. Here are two wild stats from the Eagles’ win:

• Jalen Hurts didn’t complete a pass in the second half: Hurts became the first NFL quarterback since 1978 to go 0-7 or worse in multiple games in a season, according to ESPN Research (the first was the Eagles narrow Week 4 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers). Amazingly, the Eagles won both games, becoming the first team since the 1987 New England Patriots to win multiple games in a season where they didn’t complete a single second-half pass.
• The Bills got the final 14 first downs in the game and still lost: Flagged by Wharton professor Deniz Selman, the Bills offense dominated the Eagles in the second half, but came away with just 12 points, thanks to a failed two-point conversion and a blocked extra point that ultimately became the difference in the game. The Eagles ran 17 plays in the second half, gaining just 17 yards and punting on all four of their possessions.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 9:15am

Eagles made some ‘mind-boggling calls’ during second-half meltdown

// Pinned

// Timestamp 12/29/25 8:17am

Eagles injury report

• Defensive end Jaelan Phillips left Sunday’s game in the second quarter with what appeared to be a lower leg injury, but quickly returned to the field and ended up playing 87% of the defensive snaps.
• Wide receiver Britain Covey also returned to the field after briefly being knocked out of Sunday’s game during a punt return, when a Bills player accidentally ran into his leg while attempting a fair catch.
• Offensive tackle Lane Johnson (foot) and linebacker Nakobe Dean (hamstring) both sat out Sunday’s game. Johnson hasn’t played since Week 11, but likely won’t be back until the playoffs.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 7:14am

The inconsistency of the Eagles offense won’t be resolved until the offseason

Jalen Hurts sat at his locker stall and nodded as Nick Sirianni spoke. The quarterback listened intently to his coach until he ended the conversation with an adage that summed up the Eagles’ defensive-minded 13-12 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

“Hey,” Hurts said to a parting Sirianni, “a win’s a win.”

They mostly have defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s unit to thank. Special teams should get kudos as well. And lastly, they should give gratitude to Bills coach Sean McDermott, who shockingly went for two and the win despite the ineptitude of the Eagles offense in the second half.

The second half was that bad, especially when you consider the Bills’ suspect run defense. The Eagles ran 17 plays and gained just 17 yards before Hurts knelt in the victory formation. They produced one first down. Hurts didn’t complete any of his seven pass attempts.

In the first half, the offense seemed to build off the improvements shown in the previous two games. The offense wasn’t exactly high-powered, but it was effective as the Eagles took a 13-0 lead into halftime. But Sirianni and Patullo seemingly took their foot off the pedal.

“We weren’t in a mode of saying, ‘Hey, 13-0 is enough,” Sirianni said. “Not against this quarterback, not against this offense. And so I don’t think our mindset was ever that. But I got to do a better job there in that scenario. I’ll put that on myself.”

This wasn’t the first time this season that the Eagles have watched a double-digit lead evaporate, or the first time the offense has had disparate halves, or the first time the coach’s conservatism has come under question.

Sirianni can add another victory to a remarkable 43-2 record when the Eagles win the turnover margin during his five years at the helm. The offense didn’t give the ball away once, while the defense forced an Allen fumble.

But Hurts seems to be coached into doing anything to avoid turnovers. He had three throwaways and gave himself up for one sack on his eight drop backs in the second half.

“I don’t think it’s a conservative thing to have good ball security and be mindful that the turnover margin directly correlates with winning,” Hurts said. “That’s a truth of the game, and that’s a well-known fact of what we’ve been able to do and how we’ve been able to play over the last five years collectively.”

— Jeff McLane

// Timestamp 12/29/25 7:10am

NFL playoff picture: Eagles still have a shot at the No. 2 seed

The Eagles (11-5) still have a shot at landing the NFC’s No. 2 seed thanks to the Chicago Bears (11-5) loss to the San Francisco 49ers (12-4) Sunday night.

The math is pretty simple. An Eagles win against the Washington Commanders (4-12) and a Bears loss to the Detroit Lions (8-8) and the Birds would end the season with the No. 2 seed. Otherwise, the Eagles would enter the playoffs at the No. 3 seed.

It might not seem like a big difference from the No. 3 seed, but it would mean hosting at least two playoff games at the Linc if the Eagles win in the wild card round.

It also makes a big difference in who the Eagles would play during the wild card round. If they land the No. 2 seed, they would host the No. 7 seed Green Bay Packers (9-6-1).

If the Eagles end up the No. 3 seed, they’d host the No. 6 seed, which could end up being the 49ers, Los Angeles Rams (11-4), or the Seattle Seahawks (13-3).

NFC playoff picture

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NFC West scenarios

The math is pretty easy here. The winner of Week 18’s matchup between the San Francisco 49ers (12-4) and the Seattle Seahawks (13-3) will end up deciding the NFC West champion and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Rams had an outside chance at claiming the division, but were officially eliminated from contention by the 49ers’ win Sunday night. Now the best Los Angeles can do is the No. 5 seed.

Win-and-you’re-in game for the NFC South, unless…

With both teams losing Sunday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-9) and Carolina Panthers (8-8) will face off in Week 18 win-and-you’re-in game for the NFC South title.

The winner will claim the division crown and the NFC’s No. 4 seed, which means they’ll host a game against the No. 5 seed.

That is, unless the Atlanta Falcons (6-9) defeat the Rams Monday night. If that happens, a Falcons and Buccaneers win next week could force a three-way tie at 8-9 atop the NFC South.

In that unlikely case, the first tiebreaker would be head-to-head among the three teams, which the Panthers would win.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 7:07am

Nick Sirianni taunts Bills fans following win

During the 2023 season, an emotional Nick Sirianni taunted Kansas City Chiefs fans following a narrow win by the Eagles.

The move backfired. The Eagles went on to lose five of their next six games in an epic collapse that cost them an NFC East title, followed by an early playoff exit.

That trash-talking Sirianni was back following Sunday’s win against Buffalo, where the Birds head coach offered a similar-sounding taunt aimed at Bills fans.

“There was a lot of talking by those Buffalo fans coming in. Not so much anymore!” Sirianni shouted as he exited the field. “Not so much anymore.”

It’s unclear what Bills fans might’ve said prior to the game to get Sirianni so worked up. The Eagles coach wasn’t asked about the outburst by reporters following the game.

“They got really good fans,” Sirianni said. “Cool to get out of here with a win.”

“Can he just not help himself?” 94.1 WIP host Joe DeCamara asked during his show Monday morning. “I think he’s a great coach. This is an aspect of his thing I could do without.”

Thankfully, there’s no chance of a similar collapse this season. The Eagles have already clinched the NFC East and will likely enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed, meaning they’ll host at least one game at the Linc.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 7:06am

Eagles to face the Commanders Sunday in final game of the season

The Eagles will face the Washington Commanders for the second time in three weeks in their final game of the regular season.

The game will take place on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. and air on CBS, the NFL announced late Sunday night. With both the Eagles and Chicago Bears playing for the No. 2 seed, the NFL opted to schedule both teams concurrently so neither game would be irrelevant at kickoff.

If the Eagles win and the Bears lose to the Detroit Lions, the Birds would end up the No. 2 seed. Otherwise the Eagles will enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed.

The Commanders will be chippy, especially after the Eagles scored a late touchdown and went for a two-point conversion during their Week 16 game. Commanders head coach Dan Quinn suggested the Eagles were running up the score following the game.

“I can only answer for my side, what I would do,” Quinn told reporters. “Hey man, if that’s how they want to get down, then all good. We’ll play them again in two weeks.”

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 7:03am

Full Week 18 schedule

Saturday

• Panthers at Buccaneers: 4:30 p.m., ESPN/ABC
• Seahawks at 49ers: 8 p.m., ESPN/ABC

Sunday

• Saints at Falcons: 1 p.m., Fox
• Browns at Bengals: 1 p.m., CBS
• Colts at Texans: 1 p.m., CBS
• Titans at Jaguars: 1 p.m., Fox
• Packers at Vikings: 1 p.m., CBS
• Cowboys at Giants: 1 p.m., Fox
• Chargers at Broncos: 4:25 p.m., CBS
• Cardinals at Rams: 4:25 p.m., Fox
• Chiefs at Raiders: 4:25 p.m., CBS
• Dolphins at Patriots: 4:25 p.m., Fox
• Lions at Bears: 4:25 p.m., Fox
• Jets at Bills: 4:25 p.m., CBS
• Commanders at Eagles: 4:25 p.m., CBS
• Ravens at Steelers: 8:20 p.m., NBC

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 6:59am

Photos from Eagles win against Bills

2025 Eagles schedule

• Week 1: Eagles 24, Cowboys 20
• Week 2: Eagles 20, Chiefs 17
• Week 3: Eagles 33, Rams 26
• Week 4: Eagles 31, Buccaneers 25
• Week 5: Broncos 21, Eagles 17
• Week 6: Giants 34, Eagles 17
• Week 7: Eagles 28, Vikings 22
• Week 8: Eagles 38, Giants 20
• Week 9: Bye week
• Week 10: Eagles 10, Packers 7
• Week 11: Eagles 16, Lions 9
• Week 12: Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
• Week 13: Bears 24, Eagles 15
• Week 14: Chargers 22, Eagles 19
• Week 15: Eagles 31, Raiders 0
• Week 16: Eagles 29, Commanders 18
• Week 17: Eagles 13, Bills 12
• Week 18: Commanders at Eagles, TBD (TBD)

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/29/25 6:57am

• What you should know
• The Eagles (10-5) will face Josh Allen and the Bills (11-4) Sunday in Buffalo, where snow is in the forecast.
• The Eagles clinched the NFC East and a playoff spot, but could still move up to the No. 1 or No. 2 seed.
• It was a bad weekend for NFL officials, including one call that could come back to bite the Eagles.
• Saquon Barkley and the Eagles ran angry in the second half against the Commanders. Jeff McLane thinks it’s about time.
• Columnist Mike Sielski wrote a eulogy for the Tush Push, which died Saturday against the Commanders.

// Timestamp 12/22/25 3:59pm

A lot rides on tonight’s 49ers-Colts game

Fans across the Delaware Valley will be rooting for 44-year-old Philip Rivers to lead the Indianapolis Colts to victory tonight against Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers.

Why? A Colts win preserves the Eagles’ slim hopes of ending the season as the NFC’s No. 1 seed and securing a first-round bye.

The Eagles aren’t the only team that has a stake in tonight’s outcome. Here’s a rundown.

If the Colts win:

• The Eagles will remain alive in the hunt for the NFC’s No. 1 seed
• The Colts will remain alive in the hunt for the AFC South title

If the 49ers win:

• The Bills, Jaguars, and Chargers will all clinch playoff berths
• The 49ers will still be on track to land the No. 1 seed by winning their final two games against the Bears and Seahawks

If the Colts do win tonight, here’s what needs to happen in Week 17 for the Eagles to enter Week 18 with a shot at landing the No. 1 seed and home field advantage throughout the playoffs:

• Eagles win vs. Bills
• Bears win vs. 49ers
• Panthers win vs. Seahawks

A Los Angeles Rams loss to the Atlanta Falcons would also help the Eagles, but the Birds just need the Rams to lose one of their final two games.

Essentially, the Eagles would need to finish the season with a 12-5 record in a three-way tiebreaker with the Bears and Seahawks to nab the top playoff seed. Unlikely? Yes, but crazier things have happened.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 3:34pm

Despite recent struggles, Eagles sticking with Jake Elliott

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said the Eagles will not be bringing in competition for Jake Elliott as the longtime kicker has hit a rough patch late in the season.

Sirianni on Monday reiterated his confidence that Elliott will bounce back.

Elliott’s 70.8% success rate (17-for-24) on field goals is the lowest of his career. He missed a 43-yard field goal and a 52-yard try (as well as a 57-yard kick that was negated by a penalty) during Saturday’s win over Washington.

Elliott has missed five field goal attempts over the last five games. He also has a missed extra point during that stretch.

“I understand it’s a production-based business,” Elliott said Saturday when asked if he was worried the Eagles could bring in a new kicker. “You see it all the time. That’s out of my hands, that’s out of my control, all I can do is kind of put my head down and keep pushing.

“I just got to put the ball through the uprights. That’s my job, man. That’s it. It’s not any deeper than that.”

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/22/25 3:02pm

Tyler Steen won’t be suspended after brawl with Commanders

// Timestamp 12/22/25 3:00pm

Nick Sirianni speaks to reporters

// Timestamp 12/22/25 2:06pm

‘The championship runs through Philly’

On The Speakeasy podcast, former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy and former Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho were asked the question: Are the Eagles the best team in the NFC?

“When did we let it go,” McCoy said. “We were the defending champs last year. We were the NFC champs. See, y’all forget a lot though. I don’t forget. Last year, we won the whole NFC East. Last year we won the whole NFC. Last year we won the whole league, the Super Bowl. Why y’all forgot? Because we had a couple bad games. Because our Super Bowl quarterback had a couple of bad moments. We’re still the Eagles and we still put on a show. And the championship runs through Philly.”

To Acho, Saturday’s game showed the complete package of what the Eagles could be. Jalen Hurts completed 22 of 30 throws for 185 yards with A.J. Brown as his favorite target, and gained 40 rushing yards on seven carries. Meanwhile, Saquon Barkley finished with 132 yards on 21 carries to contribute to the team’s 207 total rushing yards.

“I think the Eagles are who we thought they were supposed to be all season,” Acho said. “Saquon [Barkley] really got active today. And then on top of that, A.J. Brown, he finally got active today. … This was maybe one of two or three complete games the Eagles have played all season. … The Eagles checked every single box you could hope and expect that they check.”

After a three-game skid, the Eagles have managed to bounce back with two consecutive wins over the 2-13 Las Vegas Raiders and the 4-11 Commanders, two teams that have struggled throughout the season.

“These games are momentum,” McCoy said. “It’s not about the opponent. It’s about getting us back in that groove. Getting us back with that motivation. Because when we get to the playoffs, we’re going to be rolling baby. … Résumés matter, playoff experience matters. And the way the offense is kind of clicking, the defense is making plays. I’m ready to roll.”

— Ariel Simpson

// Timestamp 12/22/25 1:29pm

Nakobe Dean tells fans his injury isn’t serious

During Saturday’s win against the Commanders, Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean left the game with a hamstring injury halfway through the first quarter and didn’t return.

After the game, teammate Jordan Davis told 94.1 WIP’s Devan Kaney Dean’s injury was minor. And on Sunday, while hosting a toy drive in Cherry Hill, Dean confirmed to fans he was doing “just fine” and only tweaked his hamstring, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Ashlyn Sullivan.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 12:45pm

How the Eagles finished in the Pro Bowl fan vote

// Timestamp 12/22/25 12:20pm

Merrill Reese: Commanders are being ‘cranky’ losers

Washington Commanders coaches and players were upset following Saturday’s loss to the Eagles, stemming from a two-point try they viewed as the Birds running up the score.

The conversion led to a melee, resulting in three players — including Eagles offensive lineman Tyler Steen — being booted from the game.

“I can only answer for my side, what I would do,” Commanders head coach Dan Quinn told reporters following the game. “Hey man, if that’s how they want to get down, then all good. We’ll play them again in two weeks.”

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni told reporters he thought the extra point gave the Eagles a better shot at winning the game, and wasn’t because kicker Jake Elliott missed two field goal attempts.

Regardless, Eagles announcer Merrill Reese didn’t think the Birds were trying to run up the score, pointing in part to the team’s decision to stop throwing the ball and playing their backups on defense.

“If you’re playing at the rate the Commanders are playing, and you’re down to your third quarterback, anything’s going to make you irritable. You’re going to be angry about everything,” Reese said during an interview on 94.1 WIP Monday. “That was not running up the score. They’re just being cranky.”

Eagles running back Saquon Barkley summed up the feelings of both teams to reporters following the game.

“This team don’t like us, and that’s just the truth,” Barkley said. “And we don’t like them, either.”

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 10:29am

‘We got a little fired up on the sideline’

// Timestamp 12/22/25 9:57am

It was a bad weekend for NFL officials

It’s easy to criticize the refs, but this weekend NFL officials really gave fans and announcers a few things to complain about.

First up is key late play during the New England Patriots’ win over the Baltimore Ravens Sunday night.

With a little more than three minutes remaining, Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey appeared to outright tackle Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte on a deep pass. Despite an official watching from yards away, no flags were thrown, to the surprise of everyone on NBC’s Sunday Night Football broadcast.

“It’s not really hard — that’s pass interference,” NBC rules analyst and former official Terry McAulay said.

Earlier on Sunday, during the Carolina Panthers’ win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, officials missed what appeared to be a blatant fourth-down penalty.

With a little under five minutes remaining and the game tied, Panthers defender Princely Umanmielen hit punter Riley Dixon after he kicked the ball, which should have resulted in a penalty and a first down. Instead, officials called holding on the Buccaneers and missed the running-into-the-kicker penalty all together.

“It’s contact to the body. I would have had running into the kicker,” Fox rules analyst and former official Mike Pereria said during the broadcast.

That missed call proved pivotal, as the Panthers marched down the field and kicked what ultimately became the game-winning field goal.

Then there’s the controversial ending of the Pittsburgh Steelers-Detroit Lions game, where Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown lateraled to quarterback Jared Goff for what would have been the game-winning touchdown.

On the play, St. Brown was called for pass interference, negating the touchdown. But both head official Carl Cheffers and CBS announcers Jim Nantz and Tony Romo did a poor job explaining why the Lions didn’t get another play

“By rule, that penalty is not enforced and there is no replay. The game is over,” Cheffers said.

NFL rules stipulate if the offense commits a foul with no time remaining, “there shall be no extension of the period. If the foul occurs on the last play of the half, a score by the offense is not counted.”

If Goff had run into the end zone with time remaining on the clock, the Lions would have been given another play. Because of the penalty, the Lions weren’t able to review whether Goff crossed the plane of the goal line with one second remaining.

It also wasn’t the only controversial call to end the game. With 22 seconds left, Goff hit St. Brown on a one-yard touchdown pass, which would have won the game. But officials called pass interference on Lions receiver Isaac TeSlaa, negating the go-ahead score.

“The reporting official on that play told me that the offending player picked one of the defenders, creating an opportunity for the offensive player to make the catch,” Cheffers told pool reporter Nolan Bianch following the game.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 7:49am

Eagles can get help for No. 1 seed tonight

The Eagles have already clinched the NFC East and will host a wild-card game at the Linc, but the Birds still have an unlikely shot at landing the No. 1 seed.

Here’s how the NFC playoff picture looks after Sunday’s games, with five teams having already clinched a postseason spot:

NFC playoff picture

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To land the No. 1 seed, Philly would need to win their final two games against the Buffalo Bills and Washington Commanders and get a lot of help, beginning with tonight’s Monday Night Football matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts.

The Eagles need the Colts and 44-year-old Philip Rivers to win tonight to have any hope of landing the No. 1 seed.

Here’s everything that needs to happen over the final two weeks of the season for the Eagles to end up with the top seed and secure a first-round bye:

• Eagles win their final two games against the Buffalo Bills and Washington Commanders
• San Francisco 49ers lose to the Indianapolis Colts Monday and the Bears in Week 17
• Seattle Seahawks lose their final two games against the Carolina Panthers and 49ers
• Chicago Bears win against the 49ers in Week 16 and lose to the Detroit Lions in Week 17
• Los Angeles Rams lose one of their final two games against the Atlanta Falcons or Arizona Cardinals

If all that happens, the Eagles would finish the season with a 12-5 record and would win a three-way tiebreaker with the Bears and Seahawks.

The path to the No. 2 seed is more realistic. If the Eagles win out, all they would need is for the Bears to lose their final two games to move up to the No. 2 seed. In that case, they’d host a wild card game against the No. 7 seed, currently the Green Bay Packers.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 7:45am

Josh Allen injured ahead of Sunday’s game against Eagles

There’s snow in the forecast Sunday in Buffalo, where the Eagles will take on the Bills with playoff seeding on the line for both teams.

The Bills will officially clinch a playoff spot if the Indianapolis Colts lose tonight to the San Francisco 49ers, and they’ll enter Week 17 still in the hunt for their sixth-straight AFC East title.

Reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen injured his ankle during Sunday’s win against the Cleveland Browns, but X-rays taken at halftime were reportedly negative and he finished the game for the Bills.

Allen didn’t seem too concerned following the game.

“We’re gravy, baby,” Allen told CBS sideline reporter Evan Washburn following the game.

The last time the Eagles faced the Bills was 2023 at the Linc, with the Birds rallying to win in overtime. The celebrations didn’t last long, as the Eagles went on to lose five of their final six games and suffer an early playoff exit.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 7:40am

The Eagles need to continue to be angry runners

Saquon Barkley had rushed for just 52 yards on 14 carries when he came to the sideline late in the third quarter. The Eagles had taken a 14-10 lead after a 17-play, touchdown-scoring drive, but they did so in spite of the struggles in the running game.

It’s been a season-long slog on the ground, but there have been glimpses of hope in recent weeks. And Barkley, who’s had to run into more stacked boxes than ever in his eighth year, felt that he wasn’t taking advantage of opportunities against a weakened Commanders defense.

“We got a little fired up on the sideline, but it was good,” Barkley said. “It’s all out of love, let’s say that. We want to do what’s best for the team when we’re winning games and hold each other accountable. But thank God it happened for me, to be honest, because it put me in my bag, as people would say.”

It was a 12-yard touchdown run off left tackle. The stat sheet account of the play doesn’t do Barkley’s seventh rushing score of the season justice. Jordan Mailata gave perhaps the best description.

“That was an angry run by Say,” the Eagles left tackle said. “Kind of expected that from him by the way he was acting on the sideline. He was just very adamant, being very positive, like, ‘Hey, we’re gonna get it.’”

Barkley’s touchdown wasn’t exactly the final nail. But he drove the last spike with a dazzling 48-yard run two drives later. And backup Tank Bigsby buried the Commanders with a 22-yard bolt into the end zone of the Eagles’ eventual 29-18 win at Northwest Stadium on Saturday.

It may be no coincidence that the offensive improvement came after Sirianni asserted more of his authority on that side of the ball three games ago. There were bright moments in the overtime loss to the Chargers, but Hurts had five turnovers.

Actually, there were improvements in run design the week before against the Bears. But the Eagles defense didn’t meet its usual standard and the offense couldn’t compensate. The numbers in the last four games, though, suggest that Barkley and Co. are doing something better.

The Eagles have averaged 4.96 yards per carry over that span. In their first 11 games, they averaged only 3.91 yards.

— Jeff McLane

// Timestamp 12/22/25 7:33am

Former Imhotep Charter star’s catch propels Bears into the playoffs

After overcoming a 16-6 deficit late in the fourth quarter Saturday night, the Chicago Bears beat the Green Bay Packers, in overtime, 22-16, thanks to a 46-yard touchdown reception from Philly native DJ Moore.

Three plays after the Bears stopped Green Bay on its drive in overtime, quarterback Caleb Williams found Moore, an Imhotep Charter graduate, off a play-action post route to score the walk-off touchdown, his sixth touchdown reception of the season.

“I just had to run, run like I did in practice and connect like we did at practice,” Moore said of his winning reception. ”It was really a practice rep but we did it in a game. Like I said, it was just amazing that we did it against the Packers.”

The victory moved Chicago to the NFC’s No. 2 seed and put the Bears in the driver’s seat to win the NFC North for the first time since 2018. The Bears haven’t made the playoffs since 2020.

Moore is the Bears’ leading receiver this year with 664 yards and is tied for the team lead in touchdowns with Rome Odunze.

Now in his eighth season in the NFL after a standout career at Maryland, Moore has scored three of his touchdowns in the last two games. This is his third year in Chicago after getting traded from the Carolina Panthers after the 2022 season and he has led the team in receiving each of the last three years.

— Devin Jackson

2025 Eagles schedule

• Week 1: Eagles 24, Cowboys 20
• Week 2: Eagles 20, Chiefs 17
• Week 3: Eagles 33, Rams 26
• Week 4: Eagles 31, Buccaneers 25
• Week 5: Broncos 21, Eagles 17
• Week 6: Giants 34, Eagles 17
• Week 7: Eagles 28, Vikings 22
• Week 8: Eagles 38, Giants 20
• Week 9: Bye week
• Week 10: Eagles 10, Packers 7
• Week 11: Eagles 16, Lions 9
• Week 12: Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
• Week 13: Bears 24, Eagles 15
• Week 14: Chargers 22, Eagles 19
• Week 15: Eagles 31, Raiders 0
• Week 16: Eagles 29, Commanders 18
• Week 17: Eagles at Bills, Sunday, Dec. 28, 4:25 p.m. (Fox 29)
• Week 18: Commanders at Eagles, TBD (TBD)

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/22/25 7:30am

• What you should know
• The Eagles clinched the NFC East and a playoff spot with Saturday’s 29-18 win against the Washington Commanders.
• The Birds will also clinch the NFC’s No. 3 seed or better if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win Sunday. Here’s an updated look at the NFL playoff picture.
• Eagles grades: Defense was sound and the special teams was shaky, but the Birds finally ran angry.
• Jake Elliott missed two field goals (a third miss was wiped out by a penalty) leading to a two-point controversy.
• Brawl leads to a Big Dom sighting, officiating the Tush Push, and more from Fox’s Eagles-Commanders broadcast

// Timestamp 12/21/25 6:07pm

After Cowboys’ loss, Jerry Jones says ‘we all underachieved’

The Dallas Cowboys’ slim playoff hopes were dashed by the Eagles Saturday night. On Sunday, the Los Angeles Chargers poured alcohol into the wound with a 34-17 romp of Dak Prescott and company at home.

“We all underachieved,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said following the game, reflecting on the team’s lost season.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 4:16pm

Eagles don’t get any help from the Buccaneers

After Saturday’s win against the Washington Commanders, the Eagles would’ve clinched the No. 3 seed or higher with a Tampa Bay Buccaneers win Sunday.

Unfortunately, the Carolina Panthers defeated the Bucs and took sole possession of first place in the NFC South.

If the Eagles and Panthers both end the season with a 10-7 record, Carolina would win the tiebreaker with a better record among common opponents. That would force the Birds down to the No. 4 seed, where they would host the No. 5 seed in the wild card round, currently the Los Angeles Rams.

The good news is a win next week against the Bills or just one more Panthers loss will lock the Eagles into the No. 3 seed or better heading into the playoffs.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 2:47pm

Eagles’ unlikely path to the NFC’s No. 1 seed

The Eagles have less than a 1% chance of ending the season with the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, according to the New York Times, but weird things have happened before.

In 2018, the Eagles needed a host of things to happen to secure a wild-card spot down the stretch, and they all did, pushing the Birds to the postseason.

Same thing happened in 2008, with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers losing to give the Eagles a shot at the playoffs if they defeated the Dallas Cowboys in the final game of the season, which they did in a 44-6 blowout.

So while it is highly unlikely the Eagles get all the help they need to move up to the top playoff seed, here what would need to happen:

• Eagles win their final two games against the Bills and Commanders
• 49ers lose to the Colts Monday and the Bears in Week 17
• Seahawks lose their final two games against the Panthers and 49ers
• Bears win against the 49ers in Week 16 and lose to the Lions in Week 17
• Rams lose one of their final two games against the Falcons or Cardinals

If all that happens, the Eagles would finish the season with a 12-5 record and would win a three-way tiebreaker with the Bears and Seahawks.

The path to the No. 2 seed is more realistic. If the Eagles win out, all they would need is for the Bears to lose their final two games to move up to the No. 2 seed. In that case, they’d host a wild card game against the No. 7 seed, currently the Green Bay Packers.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 1:57pm

DeVonta Smith celebrates with daughter’s dance

// Timestamp 12/21/25 12:09pm

Jake Elliott doesn’t know what’s going on

There is an isolating nature to Jake Elliott’s job.

Hundreds of micro moments impact a given game. There are passes and runs and blocks and tackles and situational coaching decisions. All of those things can work in harmony on a given day and success or failure could still hinge on your swinging foot.

The Eagles won going away, 29-18, over the Washington Commanders Saturday night and clinched the NFC East title along the way. But inside a happy locker room was a frustrated kicker who missed two field goal attempts, who has missed five over the past five games, who also missed a point-after attempt during that stretch.

It is not the isolating part that is getting to him, Elliott said. In fact, the soon-to-be-31-year-old kicker in his ninth NFL season wishes it were a mental thing at this point.

“It would be easier to fix,” Elliott said.

“It’s just frustrating.”

#Eagles K Jake Elliott on whether his recent struggles are mental: “No, honestly, not at all. That’s kind of what’s frustrating about is I don’t feel that way at all. I kind of wish it was. Easier to fix.” Elliott asked if he worries about the team exploring other options, says… pic.twitter.com/dNgUj5auRy

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) December 21, 2025

Saturday’s frustration was amplified by the fact that Elliott struck the ball well during warmups, he said. He hit from 52, 55, 58, and 60 yards during pregame. He entered the game, he said, with a good plan, “and when they don’t go through in the game it’s no one to blame but yourself. That’s where we’re at. I got to figure some stuff out.”

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/21/25 10:54am

Lane Johnson, Jalen Carter expected back next week: ESPN

The Eagles could be getting some major reinforcements ahead of next week’s matchup against the Buffalo Bills.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports right tackle Lane Johnson (foot) and defensive tackle Jalen Carter (shoulders) are expected back next week and could take the field against the Bills.

It’s also possible both could be healthy and the Eagles choose to rest them, considering the odds of moving up to the No. 2 or No. 1 seed are incredibly low.

Johnson missed the last five Eagles games after suffering a Lisfranc sprain in his foot during the Birds’ win over the Detroit Lions in Week 11 on Nov. 16.

Carter has missed the past three games after undergoing a procedure on both of his shoulders earlier this month. Carter had been dealing with a shoulder injury since the beginning of training camp.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 10:27am

Cooper DeJean’s celebration was a tribute to John Cena

// Timestamp 12/21/25 9:49am

The Tush Push is dead

Here at Northwest Stadium, just 35 miles from the city that was the setting for David Simon’s magisterial series The Wire, it is only fitting that, as if attending a barstool wake among Baltimore po-leece, we eulogize the Tush Push. The play that once gave the Eagles a physical, psychological, and strategic edge over every opponent they encountered is, by all available indications, dead.

Three times during their 29-18 victory Saturday over the Commanders, the Eagles tried to run their unique and once-unstoppable version of the quarterback sneak. Three times, it failed. Once, tackle Fred Johnson committed a false-start penalty. Once, Hurts gained no yardage. Once, guard Landon Dickerson committed another false-start infraction. And with his offense facing a (relatively long) fourth-and-1 on its first possession, coach Nick Sirianni had the Eagles punt from their own 41 instead of attempting the play.

This was the flat line across the echocardiogram screen. In 2023, the Eagles led the NFL in fourth-down conversion percentage, at 67.9%. Last season, they were third, but their efficiency rate (71%) was higher. This season, they entered Saturday at 61.1%, seventh-best in the league — good, but not dominant, not close.

“Teams adjust; we’ve got to continue to adjust,” Sirianni said. “Credit to them. They did a really good job of stopping us there. … We have to get this play working the way it’s been in the past, which we’ll work our butts off to do. But we were really able to overcome.”

— Mike Sielski

// Timestamp 12/21/25 8:00am

NFL Playoff picture: Eagles can clinch No. 3 seed or better

Despite Google jumping the gun, the Eagles (10-5) clinched the NFC East and a playoffs spot thanks to Saturday’s win against the Washington Commanders (4-10) Saturday night.

That means the Birds will host at least one playoff game at the Linc, where the Eagles haven’t lost a postseason game since the 2019 playoffs.

The Eagles could also clinch the No. 3 seed or better if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) defeat the Carolina Panthers (7-7) Sunday.

While the odds are slim, the Eagles are still technically alive in the hunt for the No. 1 seed. But their remote chances for the NFC’s top playoff seed (and a first-round bye) will end if the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) defeat the Indianapolis Colts (8-6) on Monday Night Football, according to Wharton professor Deniz Selman.

NFC playoff picture

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The Seattle Seahawks (12-3) control their own playoff destiny after defeating the Los Angeles Rams (11-4) Thursday night. If they win out, they’ll end the season with the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The same goes for the 49ers.

Despite being one game back, San Francisco and Seattle face off in Week 18. The 49ers defeated the Minnesota Vikings (6-8) way back in Week 1, so a win in Week 18 would clinch a tiebreaker and send the NFC playoffs through Santa Clara, where this year’s Super Bowl is being held.

First the 49ers still need to clinch a playoff spot, which they would do with with a win against the Colts Monday night or a Detroit Lions (8-6) loss.

As for the Bears, they’ll clinch their first playoff spot since the 2020 season with a Lions loss.

Then there’s the NFC South, where the Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) play twice over the next three weeks, beginning Sunday in Charlotte. Those two games will decide who hosts a playoff game and who heads home.

Finally, the Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1) were officially eliminated from the playoffs by the Eagles clinching the NFC East, since winning the division was their only remaining path to the postseason.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 9:18am

NFL games on TV in Philly Sunday

With the Eagles playing Saturday night, here are the NFL games airing on TV in and around Philadelphia Sunday:

• Bills at Browns: 1 p.m., CBS3 (Ian Eagle, J.J. Watt, Evan Washburn)
• Chargers at Cowboys: 1 p.m., Fox 29 (Adam Amin, Drew Brees, Kristina Pink)
• Steelers at Lions: 4:25 p.m., CBS3 (Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Tracy Wolfson)
• Patriots at Ravens: 8:20 p.m., NBC10 (Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, Melissa Stark)

The San Francisco 49ers play the Indianapolis Colts Monday night at 8:15 p.m. on ESPN and 6ABC, with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the call.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 8:36am

Eagles victory Sunday photo

// Timestamp 12/21/25 8:01am

Eagles injury report

• Tyler Steen was ejected late in the fourth quarter following the Eagles’ two-point conversion for his involvement in a scuffle that broke out between the two teams.
• Nakobe Dean injured his hamstring halfway through the first quarter when he was attempting to tackle Burks. Jihaad Campbell took his place. Dean was ruled out in the third quarter.

— Olivia Reiner

// Timestamp 12/21/25 7:55am

Jordan Love injured, status for next week unknown

Packers quarterback Jordan Love exited with a concussion after he was hit hard in the second quarter, and Green Bay blew a late lead in a gut-wrenching 22-16 overtime loss to the Chicago Bears.

Love was shaken up after a helmet-to-helmet hit by defensive lineman Austin Booker on a sack. Booker was flagged for roughing the passer.

The 27-year-old Love eventually jogged off the field and went into the blue injury tent on Green Bay’s sideline. Then he walked to the visiting locker room.

There was no update on Love after the loss.

“I hollered at him after the game, just really quickly,” said backup quarterback Malik Willis, who replaced Love. “I mean, I didn’t get to really get into it too much with him. Just let him know I’m praying for him and hope he’s ready to go.”

— Associated Press

// Timestamp 12/21/25 7:50am

‘If that’s how they want to get down’: Commanders coach angry at Birds following game

Near the end of the Eagles’ win against the Washington Commanders, a brawl broke out on the field that led to three players being ejected, including Birds offensive lineman Tyler Steen.

“Look out, Tyler Steen is throwing punches,” Fox’s play-by-play announcer Joe Davis said during the broadcast. “This is getting ugly.”

The fight took place after the Eagles scored a late touchdown and went for a two-point conversion rather than have Jake Elliott – who missed two field goals – attempt an extra point.

After the game, Commanders head coach Dan Quinn was asked about the melee, and he suggested the two-point conversion and the feeling the Birds were running up the score played a role in the brawl.

“I can only answer for my side, what I would do,” Quinn told reporters. “Hey man, if that’s how they want to get down, then all good. We’ll play them again in two weeks.”

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni denied attempting to run up the score.

“To get one more point in my mind is not running up the score,” Sirianni told reporters after the game. “We’re doing that to give ourselves the best chance to win.”

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 7:45am

Eagles to face the Bills next week still alive for No. 2 seed

The Eagles will still have a chance at moving up to the No. 2 seed when they take on the Buffalo Bills next week in frigid Highmark Stadium.

The Eagles have already clinched the NFC East and could clinch the No. 3 spot or better Sunday with a Carolina Panthers win. The Birds currently have a 16% chance at landing the No. 2 seed, according to the New York Times playoff calculator, but that would improve to 27% with a win over the Bills.

Considering the Eagles entered the playoffs as the No. 2 seed last year and went on to win the Super Bowl, it might be something worth playing for.

The game will mean something for the Bills, too. Buffalo could still be fighting for a playoff spot (they’ll clinch Sunday with a win against the Cleveland Browns and losses by either the Indianapolis Colts or Houston Texans) and could still be trying to overtake the New England Patriots and win the AFC East for the sixth straight season.

The last time the Eagles faced the Bills was 2023 at the Linc, with the Birds rallying to win in overtime. The celebrations didn’t last long, as the Eagles went on to lose five of their final six games and suffer an early playoff exit.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 7:40am

Photos from Eagles’ win against the Commanders

2025 Eagles schedule

• Week 1: Eagles 24, Cowboys 20
• Week 2: Eagles 20, Chiefs 17
• Week 3: Eagles 33, Rams 26
• Week 4: Eagles 31, Buccaneers 25
• Week 5: Broncos 21, Eagles 17
• Week 6: Giants 34, Eagles 17
• Week 7: Eagles 28, Vikings 22
• Week 8: Eagles 38, Giants 20
• Week 9: Bye week
• Week 10: Eagles 10, Packers 7
• Week 11: Eagles 16, Lions 9
• Week 12: Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
• Week 13: Bears 24, Eagles 15
• Week 14: Chargers 22, Eagles 19
• Week 15: Eagles 31, Raiders 0
• Week 16: Eagles 29, Commanders 18
• Week 17: Eagles at Bills, Sunday, Dec. 28, 4:29 p.m. (Fox 29)
• Week 18: Commanders at Eagles, TBD (TBD)

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/21/25 7:35am

• What you should know
• The Eagles (9-5) need just one more win to clinch the NFC East and a playoff berth thanks to their shutout win against the Las Vegas Raiders.
• Eagles grades: High marks for the defense and Jalen Hurts, who returned to his Super Bowl MVP form.
• Here’s what columnists Mike Sielski and Marcus Hayes thought of the win, as well as what the national media is saying about the Birds.
• The Eagles will face the Washington Commanders on Saturday at 5 p.m. on Fox. The Birds will again be the favorites in Week 16.
• On Monday, the Commanders shut down starting quarterback Jayden Daniels, paving the way for the Eagles to face another former backup, Marcus Mariota.

// Timestamp 12/15/25 5:05pm

Injuries around the league could shake up playoff races

Micah Parsons is the Packers’ best defensive player. He entered Sunday’s game with 12½ sacks and a league-high 60 QB pressures, a brilliant return on the Packers’ investment. He cost the Pack two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in a blockbuster trade with Dallas, then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension.

Then, Sunday. Parsons left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter just before the Broncos took the lead for good in their 34-26 win. Reports indicate that he has a torn ACL.

The loss dropped the Packers to 9-4-1, a half-game in the NFC North standings behind the 10-4 Bears — the team they visit Saturday night — but Green Bay leads the 9-5 Eagles, in case that matters. Parsons’ absence might matter more than anything. It would be like the Browns losing Myles Garrett, or maybe even like the Chiefs losing Patrick Mahomes.

On that point …

Mahomes left the Chiefs’ loss Sunday with a torn ACL. The Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.

So, suddenly, the best player on an elite NFC team is gone, and, while the return from an ACL injury can be as short at eight months, Parsons, a dynamic athlete who relies on speed, probably won’t be the same until 2027.

Also, suddenly, the best player in the NFL over the last eight seasons on the best team in the NFL over the last eight seasons is gone, and, as perhaps the most effective mobile quarterback in history, Mahomes probably won’t be the same until 2027, either. Neither will the Chiefs.

Finally, star wideout Davante Adams left the Rams’ comeback win against the visiting Lions when he aggravated a hamstring injury. Adams has 14 touchdown receptions, which leads the league by six. He’s seventh on the all-time TD catches list with 117, and he’s the active leader by 11. The Rams sit atop the NFC at 11-3, which might be enough to secure the No. 1 seed, but the impact of a diminished Adams could resonate in the playoffs.

— Marcus Hayes

// Timestamp 12/15/25 3:45pm

In Mariota, Eagles will again face a former backup QB

For a second straight week, the Eagles are set to face off against one of their former backups. This time, it will be Marcus Mariota at the helm of the Commanders’ offense on Saturday.

Jayden Daniels, the NFL’s 2024 offensive rookie of the year, has missed seven games this year due to a litany of injuries, including a knee sprain, a hamstring strain, and now an elbow issue. He initially dislocated his elbow injury in their Week 9 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and while he returned to action a month later, he aggravated the injury in his first game back against the Minnesota Vikings.

After the second-year quarterback missed the Week 15 win over the New York Giants, Commanders head coach Dan Quinn announced on Monday afternoon that he is being shut down for the rest of the season.

But the injuries to Daniels aren’t the only reason behind Washington’s decline from an offensive standpoint in 2025. The Commanders lack playmakers, and they’re now down two more with former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz tearing his ACL two weeks ago and wide receiver Noah Brown exiting Sunday’s game with a rib injury. Laremy Tunsil, the team’s standout left tackle, also left the Giants game with a shoulder injury.

The Eagles are well-acquainted with Mariota. Much like Daniels, the 32-year-old quarterback has the ability to extend plays with his legs, a quality that has given the Eagles defense fits at times this season.

Mariota was particularly effective on deep passes on Sunday. In fact, he had almost all of his production come on downfield passes, as he went 7-for-11 for 181 yards and a touchdown on throws greater than 10 air yards, according to Next Gen Stats.

Still, the Commanders’ offense practically tried to lose to the worst team in the NFC East. At one point, they had a 15-point lead, then fumbled the ball away twice in the fourth quarter (once from Mariota and another by running back Jeremy McNichols) to give the Giants a shot at a comeback. Saturday’s game shouldn’t be too difficult a test for Vic Fangio’s defense.

— Olivia Reiner

// Timestamp 12/15/25 3:26pm

Commanders to sit Jayden Daniels for rest of season

// Timestamp 12/15/25 3:23pm

How age, injuries, and a little less luck hurt the Commanders

They say age is only a number. But for the Washington Commanders, it’s a number that helps explain how a trip to the NFC championship game last year can be followed up by a 4-10 record through 14 games.

The easiest thing to point to is that young quarterback Jayden Daniels has only been available for seven games. But the Commanders are just 2-5 in the games Daniels has played.

Back to the age issue. The Commanders were a prime candidate for regression — this writer had them missing the playoffs in 2025 — in part because of their age, but also because they were abnormally lucky in 2024. The luck also included a low number of injuries. But the age may have caught up in 2025.

Daniels aside — the quarterback turns 25 this week — the Commanders’ season has been marred by injuries to “older” players.

As ESPN’s Bill Barnwell pointed out Monday, Washington has the league’s oldest team weighted by snaps. It has the league’s oldest defense at 28.9 years old and the fourth-oldest offense at 28.0 years old. That defense alone currently has three players aged 28 or older on injured reserve: defensive end Dorance Armstrong (28), cornerback Marshon Lattimore (29), and defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. (31).

Additionally, 33-year-old defensive end Preston Smith has been limited to 10 games, 32-year-old corner Jonathan Jones has played in nine games, 28-year-old defensive end Jalyn Holmes has eight appearances, and 29-year-old safety Will Harris has played in six games.

Veterans Von Miller (36) and Bobby Wagner (35) have stayed healthy, but that’s a lot of stress asking the two of them to anchor a defense at this stage.

Only one team allows more yards per game than Washington (382.6).

Then there’s the offense. The latest major injury to the Commanders hit former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, whose season ended last week after suffering a torn ACL. But 30-year-old receiver Terry McLaurin, who held out in camp and was later signed to a three-year, $96 million extension, has been limited to seven games, and 29-year-old receiver Noah Brown has played in four.

A nightmare season is almost over for the Commanders, and it remains to be seen if they will let Daniels take the field again to play in meaningless football games.

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/15/25 1:00pm

Micah Parsons out for the rest of season with torn ACL

Micah Parsons suffered a torn ACL during the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Denver Broncos Sunday and will miss the rest of the season, according to multiple reports. Parsons confirmed the injury on social media.

“I may be sidelined, but I am not defeated,” Parsons wrote, calling the injury his “greatest test.”

Parsons, the former Dallas Cowboys All-Pro and Harrisburg native, was traded to Green Bay before the start of the season and is tied for third in the NFL with 12.5 sacks.

The injury happened near the end of the third quarter. Parsons was chasing Broncos quarterback Bo Nix when he suddenly stopped running and grabbed his knee.

“It’s obviously tough,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters following the game. “We all know what type of player he is and the impact he’s had on our football team. To lose somebody like that, it’s tough. … We’ve got to find a way. Guys have to rally around one another.”

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/15/25 12:24pm

How the Eagles could end up with the No. 2 seed

While it remains mathematically possible for the Eagles (9-5) to still end the season as the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, it remans a very, very improbable outcome for the season.

But what about the No. 2 seed? That’s how the Eagles entered the playoffs last season, and their postseason run ended with a Super Bowl victory.

The Eagles will enter Week 16 in the NFC’s No. 3 spot, which means if the season were over they’d be hosting the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) at the Linc in a wild card game.

The current No. 2 seed is the Chicago Bears (10-4), who are essentially two games up on the Eagles because of the Birds’ loss to Chicago last month on Black Friday. So there are two scenarios where the Eagles can overtake the Bears:

• Eagles end the season 12-5 (winning their final three games), Bears end the season 11-6 (losing two of their final three).
• Eagles end the season 11-6 (winning two of their final three games), Bears end the season 10-7 (losing their final three).

The Bears’ final three games are against the Green Bay Packers (9-4-1), 49ers, and Detroit Lions (8-6). So losses to the Packers and/or Lions could impact the standings in the NFC North, where the Bears hold a slim half-game lead over the Packers.

NFC North standings

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If the Packers end up winning the NFC North, the Eagles would need to end the season a half-game up to secure the No. 2 seed, thanks to Green Bay’s tie against the Dallas Cowboys earlier this season.

In the unlikely event the Lions overtake both and win the division (the New York Times gives them a 5% chance), the Eagles hold the tiebreaker thanks to their Week 11 win at the Linc.

The good news is the only way the Eagles would drop to the No. 4 seed is if they lost their final three games and either the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) or the Carolina Panthers (7-7) won out, since they face each other twice in the final three weeks of the season.

There is a highly improbably scenario where the Eagles and Panthers both end the season 10-7, have the same conference record, and Carolina could win a tiebreaker with a better record among common foes (if they sweep the Buccaneers). In that highly unlikely case, the Panthers would move up to the No. 3 slot and the Birds would drop down to No. 4.

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/15/25 11:36am

Injuries changing the playoff picture

Micah Parsons is the Packers’ best defensive player. He entered Sunday’s game with 12½ sacks and a league-high 60 QB pressures, a brilliant return on the Packers’ investment. He cost the Pack two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in a blockbuster trade with Dallas, then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension.

Then, Sunday. Parsons left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter just before the Broncos took the lead for good in their 34-26 win. Reports indicate that he has a torn ACL.

The loss dropped the Packers to 9-4-1, a half-game in the NFC North standings behind the 10-4 Bears — the team they visit Saturday night — but Green Bay leads the 9-5 Eagles, in case that matters. Parsons’ absence might matter more than anything. It would be like the Browns losing Myles Garrett, or maybe even like the Chiefs losing Patrick Mahomes.

On that point …

Mahomes left the Chiefs’ loss Sunday with a torn ACL. The Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.

So, suddenly, the best player on an elite NFC team is gone, and, while the return from an ACL injury can be as short at eight months, Parsons, a dynamic athlete who relies on speed, probably won’t be the same until 2027.

Also, suddenly, the best player in the NFL over the last eight seasons on the best team in the NFL over the last eight seasons is gone, and, as perhaps the most effective mobile quarterback in history, Mahomes probably won’t be the same until 2027, either. Neither will the Chiefs.

Finally, star wideout Davante Adams left the Rams’ comeback win against the visiting Lions when he aggravated a hamstring injury. Adams has 14 touchdown receptions, which leads the league by six. He’s seventh on the all-time TD catches list with 117, and he’s the active leader by 11. The Rams sit atop the NFC at 11-3, which might be enough to secure the No. 1 seed, but the impact of a diminished Adams could resonate in the playoffs.

— Marcus Hayes

// Timestamp 12/15/25 10:35am

Jets fire defensive coordinator Steve Wilks

// Timestamp 12/15/25 10:23am

Playoff picture taking shape means Jalen Carter can continue to rest

What’s in it for the Eagles to rush Jalen Carter back to the field? Not much. Their magic number dropped to one Sunday with their 31-0 victory over the Raiders being coupled with a Cowboys loss.

The Eagles are in the driver’s seat, and, according to ESPN analytics, are at 99% to become NFC East champions for the second consecutive season — a win that would break a 20-season streak of no repeat champions.

Further, their likely playoff seeding is taking shape. The Eagles remain two games back of the Rams and Seahawks (who are vying for the No. 1 seed at 11-3) and a game behind second-seeded Chicago (10-4). The Eagles are sitting comfortably in the third seed in the NFC, two games ahead of the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Eagles, according to ESPN analytics, are at 83% to enter the playoffs as the third seed. It’s possible their seeding could be decided by the end of Week 17, which would make their Week 18 home game vs. Washington a meaningless game played by backups.

Surely, the Eagles won’t mind. All of this clarity just means more rest for Jalen Carter’s ailing shoulders. The star defensive tackle had a procedure on both of his shoulders after the Eagles’ loss to Chicago.

The Eagles did not put Carter on injured reserve, leaving open the possibility that he could return within four games. Sunday was Carter’s second consecutive absence, and the Eagles really won’t have much incentive to rush him back to the field. The Eagles are getting fine production from their interior defensive linemen after moving Brandon Graham inside and running a rotation of Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo, Byron Young, and Graham (who had two sacks Sunday).

Carter should be able to work his shoulders back to as close to full strength as possible as the Eagles prepare for their playoff run.

Lane Johnson, meanwhile, who missed his fourth consecutive game with a Lisfranc injury in his foot, could return to the field as soon as Saturday, according to a report from the NFL Network.

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/15/25 9:03am

Eagles numbers: Dallas Goedert joins an exclusive Birds club

Leave it to the lowly Las Vegas Raiders to help the Eagles snap a three-game losing streak in style. The Eagles’ 31-0 victory over the Raiders on Sunday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field made history and had plenty of notable numbers come out of it.

Here’s a look:

• At 2 hours, 31 minutes, Sunday’s game was the quickest Eagles game since at least 1999.
• The Eagles posted their first shutout since Dec. 30, 2018. The 31-point margin was the Eagles’ largest margin of victory during a shutout since Dec. 16, 1990, a 31-0 victory over Green Bay.
• The 75 yards the Eagles limited the Raiders to were the fewest allowed by the Eagles in the Super Bowl era, and fewest overall since they surrendered just 49 yards to the Chicago Cardinals in Dec. 4, 1955. It was also the fewest yards allowed by a team in the NFL since Cleveland allowed just 58 yards by Arizona on Nov. 5, 2023.
• The 312-yard advantage in total yards was the Eagles’ largest margin since Sept. 7, 2008, when they out-gained St. Louis by 356 yards.
• Dallas Goedert scored twice, reaching nine touchdowns on the season. He has more touchdowns in 2025 than his previous three seasons combined. Goedert became the fifth player in Eagles history to reach 400 career receptions, joining Harold Carmichael (589), Zach Ertz (579), Pete Retzlaff (452) and Brian Westbrook (426).
• Goedert is now one off the single-season record for touchdowns by an Eagles tight end. Retzlaff had 10 in 1965.
• Brandon Graham, at 37 years, 255 days, became the oldest player in Eagles history to register a sack in a game. The record was previously held by Richard Dent, who registered a sack on Dec. 14, 1997 in Atlanta on the day after his 31st birthday. Graham also became the oldest NFL player to produce multiple sacks in the first half of a game since Bruce Smith on Nov. 28, 2002 (39 years, 163 days).
• Zack Baun picked up his third interception of the season. He is the only NFL player with at least 100 tackles, three sacks, and three takeaways this year.
• Jalen Hurts became the first quarterback in Eagles history to record multiple games with a 150-plus passer rating (154.9) and 80% completion percentage in the same season. He previously accomplished the feat in Week 7 at Minnesota (158.3 rating and 82.6% percentage).
• The Eagles secured their fifth consecutive winning season with Nick Sirianni at the helm — the longest streak to start a career in franchise history. Sirianni is the 10th head coach since 1970 to start their career with five straight winning seasons, joining Bill Cowher, John Harbaugh, Mike Holmgren, Chuck Knox, Sean McVay, George Seifert, Mike Sherman, Mike Smith, and Mike Tomlin (according to Elias).
• This is the 21st winning season under Jeffrey Lurie’s ownership, making the Eagles one of only four teams with 21-plus winning seasons since Lurie took over — joining Green Bay (24), New England (24) and Pittsburgh (23).

(Stats courtesy of Philadelphia Eagles’ public relations.)

— Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/15/25 8:49am

Jalen Hurts and a return to the Eagles’ winning formula

When Jalen Hurts and the first-unit offense took their well-earned rest early in the fourth quarter of an eventual 31-0 blowout over the Las Vegas Raiders, the Eagles had a run-pass ratio of 32 to 17.

There were myriad reasons for a ground-heavy attack on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field: from wintry weather conditions and schematic improvements to situational play-calling with a lead and rebuilding Hurts after a disastrous performance vs. the Chargers.

But mostly the Eagles ran the ball because it’s what they need to establish if they want to repeat as Super Bowl champions. Coach Nick Sirianni would never cop to looking that far ahead, nor should he, but the hapless Raiders offered the opportunity to give his directionless offense a compass for the future.

The run game wasn’t exactly efficient or close to explosive, especially on traditional handoffs to running back Saquon Barkley. The 2025 offense is unlikely to become the 2024 version of itself.

But a formula closer to that of a year ago — and, really, for most of the five years of the Hurts-Sirianni partnership — is the Eagles’ best hope. That meant, obviously, more carries for Barkley and backup Tank Bigsby, but also more diversity in the calls, more runs from under center, more up-tempo, and perhaps most importantly, more of Hurts on designed keeps.

“These are things that have been staples in our offense for a long time, and we’re just continuing to use things that we think fit for that week,” Sirianni said. “I haven’t watched anything on Washington, but next week we could come out and it could be a completely different game.

“We have core philosophies and visions of our identity, but we’ll see.”

— Jeff McLane

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:46am

Eagles injury report

The good news is there isn’t much to report.

Tight end Cam Latu went to the tent late in the fourth quarter with an apparent arm injury.

Otherwise, the Eagles exited the game healthy, with Lane Johnson on track to possibly return to the team as early as this week against the Washington Commanders, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport.

— Olivia Reiner, Rob Tornoe

// Pinned

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:40am

NFL Playoff picture: Eagles will clinch NFC East with a win

Thanks, Minnesota!

With the Vikings defeating the Cowboys 34-26 on Sunday Night Football, the Eagles will clinch the NFC East and a playoff berth with a win Saturday against the Washington Commanders.

The Birds will also clinch the NFC East with just one more Cowboys loss.

NFC East standings

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That would make the Eagles the first repeat champions in the division since the 2004 Eagles.

The Eagles won the division in 2022 before Dallas won in 2023. The Eagles clinched their 2024 division title after a 41-7 home victory over the Cowboys last December. The 2025 title would give them three in four years.

The only way for the Cowboys to win the division at this point would be for the Eagles to lose out while Dallas wins their final three games — at home against the Chargers and on the road against the Commanders and New York Giants (2-12).

Considering the Birds will likely face the Marcus Mariota-led Commanders twice in the final three weeks, oddsmakers see that as impossibly unlikely. As in less than a 1% chance, according to the New York Times.

Can the Eagles still end up with the NFC’s No. 1 seed?

You’re saying there’s still a chance?

Despite Sunday’s win, the Eagles still face an all-but-impossible chance to end the season in the NFC’s No. 1 playoff spot.

NFC playoff picture

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What would have to happen? For starters, the Birds need to win their final three games ― against the Buffalo Bills (10-4) and twice against the Commanders ― to even have a shot at the top playoff seed.

Now comes the tricky part. In all likelihood, the Eagles would need four of the NFC’s top teams to lose two of their final three games, according to Wharton professor and Eagles analytics nerd Deniz Selman — the Los Angeles Rams (11-3), Seattle Seahawks (11-3), San Francisco 49ers (10-4), and Bears.

All four teams won Sunday, so the Eagles already-slim odds got worst, despite the Birds’ win.

There are some even less-likely scenarios where the Eagles could win on tiebreakers, but it all points to the road to a Super Bowl repeat not going through the Linc.

Odds are the Eagles will win the NFC East and enter the playoffs at the NFC’s No. 3 seed, but the Birds could also end up as the No. 2 seed if things fall their way. Having tiebreakers against most of the top NFC teams helps, though not with the Packers because of that pesky tie.

The Birds entered the playoffs as the No. 2 seed last year, and that seemed to work out well.

— Rob Tornoe, Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:35am

Merrill Reese called out Hurts critics at WIP and elsewhere

While there were no pundits that directly called for Jalen Hurts to be benched, a lot of talking heads on 94.1 WIP and elsewhere got close following the Eagles’ three-game losing streak.

“I do think he’s earned the right to start Sunday,” WIP host Joe Giglio said of Hurts leading up to the game. “But that’s the end of where I go with earned, deserve, and all those kind of words. … I would pull the plug if he keeps playing the way he has the last month.”

Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes also echoed those remarks, writing the Eagles would’ve been right to bench Hurts if he struggled against the Raiders Sunday, which thankfully he didn’t.

“It might sound heretical to say of the Super Bowl MVP, but if Hurts continues to struggle, he damn well should be benched,” Hayes wrote prior to Sunday’s win. “He is not sacred.”

That brings us to Sunday, where we saw a return to the Hurts who protects the ball and runs effectively, as Jeff McLane put it. That led beloved Eagles announcer Merrill Reese, who obviously heard the chatter from his WIP colleague and elsewhere, to take a shot at all the critics during the game.

“You don’t hear any cries for them to bench him, do you?” Reese asked during the broadcast after Hurts converted a long first down with his legs.

“Not from anyone with good sense,” a laughing Mike Quick responded.

7. Hurts converts a 3rd and 12 with his legs!

Merrill: You don't hear any cries for them to bench him, do you?

Mike: Not from anyone with good sense.

GOEDERT STROLLING INTO THE END ZONE FOR TD 2 (could have been 3!) pic.twitter.com/kyWzP1KuMu

— Nick Piccone (@_piccone) December 14, 2025

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:30am

Eagles next game is against the Commanders on Saturday night

Live, from Merril Reese’s least-favorite stadium, it’s Saturday night!

The Eagles will take on the Washington Commanders in Week 16 in a Saturday night matchup at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m, and the Eagles opened as 5½-point favorites at most sportsbooks.

It’s a rematch of last-year’s NFC Championship game, but a lot has happened between then and now.

The Commanders have already been eliminated from the playoffs, and under center will possibly be another former Eagles backup quarterback – Marcus Mariota, who is filling in for an injured Jayden Daniels (elbow).

Washington just ended a eight-game losing streak, defeating the lowly New York Giants 29-21. It was Washington’s first win since Oct. 5.

Three of Washington’s four wins are against the Giants and Raiders. The Commanders did, however, beat the Los Angeles Chargers back in October.

The Eagles will also face the Commanders in two weeks at the Linc in their final game of the season, which has yet to be scheduled. But unless it has some impact on the playoffs or the Eagles are in the hunt for the No. 1 seed, expect the Birds’ Week 18 game to take place at 1 p.m. on Jan. 4.

— Rob Tornoe, Jeff Neiburg

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:25am

Photos of Eagles’ shutout win against Raiders

2025 Eagles schedule

• Week 1: Eagles 24, Cowboys 20
• Week 2: Eagles 20, Chiefs 17
• Week 3: Eagles 33, Rams 26
• Week 4: Eagles 31, Buccaneers 25
• Week 5: Broncos 21, Eagles 17
• Week 6: Giants 34, Eagles 17
• Week 7: Eagles 28, Vikings 22
• Week 8: Eagles 38, Giants 20
• Week 9: Bye week
• Week 10: Eagles 10, Packers 7
• Week 11: Eagles 16, Lions 9
• Week 12: Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
• Week 13: Bears 24, Eagles 15
• Week 14: Chargers 22, Eagles 19
• Week 15: Eagles 31, Raiders 0
• Week 16: Eagles at Commanders, Saturday, Dec. 20, 5 p.m. (Fox 29)
• Week 17: Eagles at Bills, Sunday, Dec. 28, 4:29 p.m. (Fox 29)
• Week 18: Commanders at Eagles, TBD (TBD)

— Rob Tornoe

// Timestamp 12/15/25 7:20am