Joel Embiid’s new signature shoe with Skechers, the SKX JE 1, was released exclusively at Lapstone & Hammer on Saturday. The Sixers center, who signed with the brand last year after his five-year partnership with Under Armour ended, debuted his shoes during the team’s 142-134 double-overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.
Embiid wore the low-top sneaker, which has his initials on the tongue of the shoe, in black, blue, and pink. The shoe is expected to release two other colorways: neon green and black, and a red, white, black, and gold color scheme that appears to match the Sixers’ all-black jerseys from their 2001 NBA Finals team, which the team has brought back for the 25th anniversary of that season.
First look at the SKX JE1 — Joel Embiid’s new signature shoe with Skechers. The official launch is just days away, but here’s a peek at a few colorways and some of the finer details. Looks like it’s rocking a Goodyear sole, too.
Embiid previously had just one signature shoe with Under Armour, the Embiid One, which released in September 2020. Having a second signature shoe with a different company is rare, and he joins players like Aaron Gordon, Kyrie Irving, and Andrew Wiggins as active players who have had signature shoes with more than one brand.
Although the shoes’ global release has not yet been announced, Embiid is on a small list of Philly athletes who have had their own signature shoes. The most notable is Allen Iverson with 18 Reebok signature shoes. Although the list is brief, how does Embiid’s newest shoe stack up against his predecessors?
Allen Iverson was wearing the Reebok “Answer IVs” during Game 1 of the 2001 NBA Finals.
Iverson’s ‘Questions’ and ‘Answers’
There have been many Iverson shoes with Reebok, but the popularity of his Reebok Question 1 signature shoe, which debuted in 1996 after he was drafted No. 1 overall by the Sixers, and his Reebok Answer IV shoe, which came out in 2000, is palpable.
The latter has even been replicated as football cleats. Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith wore custom-made Iverson IV cleats for last year’s NFC championship game against the Commanders and the Super Bowl. The shoe was an homage to Iverson’s tunnel outfit for the NBA Finals, which featured a custom-made Eagles jersey with his last name on it and a green and white colorway for the Answer IVs.
The original Reebok Question sneakers are best known for their red cap, matching the style of the Air Jordan 11s that Iverson wore in college at Georgetown. The Question had a white base, with the red toe and blue bottoms to match the Sixers’ jerseys back then in 1996-97. Versions of them continue to be sold today, and Reebok has even unveiled a golf shoe in the same style.
We also need to show some love to the Answer 1 high-top shoes, which had hidden laces and featured the pump on the side of the shoe with Iverson’s logo on it.
Sixers forward Elton Brand, now the team’s general manager, donned several versions of his Converse signature shoes during his time playing in Philly, including these in 2010.
Converse EB
Right as Elton Brand’s playing days started in Philly in 2008, so were his signature shoe releases. He debuted the Converse EB1 signature shoes during his first season with the Sixers, with the EB logo on the strap across the sneakers shaped as the letter “D” as an homage to his mother Daisy and his Dunbar Heights neighborhood near Peekskill, N.Y.
Brand went on to release the Converse EB2 and EB3 in 2009 and 2010, respectively. His shoes were best known for being sold exclusively at JCPenney for $65. He had two stints with Philly as a player (2008-12, 2016), then worked his way up through the Sixers’ organization from player development consultant to general manager.
In 2014, Ubiq, Fila and Packer collaborated to bring former Sixer Jerry Stackhouse’s signature shoe back to life.
FILA Stackhouse
A year before Iverson came into the fold, Jerry Stackhouse, drafted third overall by the Sixers in 1995, debuted his shoe with FILA, called the “FILA Stackhouse,” which came on the heels of Grant Hill’s popular signature shoe in the mid-1990s.
The shoe became a major success because of Stackhouse’s instant impact in Philly, averaging 19.2 points as a rookie during the 1995-96 season. He played in Philly for only two seasons, but the shoe, which released in white, blue, and red and a white-and-red colorway, has held up over time.
In 2014, FILA and former Philly retailer Ubiq, which closed in 2020, collaborated with Packer Shoes to release the FILA Spaghetti, paying homage to Stackhouse’s 18-year career, which ended in Brooklyn with the Nets. The shoe featured the Sixers’ vibrant red and blue colors. He also released the FILA Stack II in 1996 and the FILA Stackhouse III during the 1998-99 season.
Julius Erving wore leather Converse sneakers during his 11 seasons with the Sixers.
Dr. J and the Converse Pro Leather
Julius Erving, better known as Dr. J, released his signature Pro Leather high-top sneakers with Converse in 1976, his first season in Philly, in a simple white-and-red colorway. Erving wore the leather sneakers throughout his career with the Sixers, which spanned 11 years.
He released a low-top version a year later, but the high-top classics are his most acclaimed signature shoe. Erving also released the Converse All-Star Dr. J 2000, which debuted in 1997, and Converse Dr. J Pro Leather 2K11, which came in 2011.
Reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is now the face of Converse, but Erving and Chuck Taylor are a big part of the brand becoming a key player in the basketball space.
Charles Barkley is one of several Philly athletes who got his signature shoe while playing for another team.
Signature shoes elsewhere
Charles Barkley, Darryl Dawkins, Dikembe Mutombo, and Paul George all played in Philly at some point in their careers, but each had signature shoes released either before or after their time with the Sixers.
Barkley’s came when he was with the Phoenix Suns. The Nike Air Force Max CB sneakers were released in 1993, which became one of his iconic shoes, and he released six others over the next five years.
Dawkins had his signature shoe with the Nets come in 1984, the Pony Uptown. Mutombo had two signature shoes with Adidas: the Mutombo I and II sneakers, which came out in 1993 and 1994, respectively, while he was with the Nuggets.
George released all six of his signature shoes with Nike before arriving in Philly, from his debut Nike PG 1 sneakers being released in Indiana in 2017 to the Nike PG 6’s in 2022 with the Clippers.
Kobe Bryant, who played his high school ball at Lower Merion, had 29 signature shoes with Nike, though his Nike Zoom Kobe VI sneakers are probably the most popular pair in his collection.
Dawn Staley was one of the first WNBA players to get her own signature shoe.
We can’t forget about North Philly native Dawn Staley, who had two signature shoes released in 1999 as part of the Nike Alpha Project. Staley debuted the Nike Air Zoom S5 during her first season in the WNBA in 1999 with the Charlotte Sting, and the Nike Air Zoom S5 II followed a year later.
Temple alum Eddie Jones, who played for six NBA teams, had two Jordan Brand signature shoes released early in his career: the Jumpman Quick 6 in 1998 with the Lakers and Jumpman Swift 6 in 1999 with the Hornets.
Sixers center Joel Embiid debuted his new signature Skechers sneakers over the weekend.
Verdict on SKX JE 1
Embiid’s first sneaker with Skechers look more modern and sleek than the Under Armour Embiid One shoes. Compared to other Philly athletes’ shoes, though, and due in part to Skechers’ lack of appeal as opposed to bigger basketball brands, it’s a tough one to rank ahead of Iverson, Dr. J, or Stackhouse’s signature shoes.
The colorway he debuted on Sunday is eye-catching, and the shoe will ultimately be judged by its performance when others are wearing it on the court. This could be the start of a long signature shoe partnership between Skechers and Embiid, but his first shoe definitely has room for improvement.
Hard Knocks has come to Philadelphia … in more ways than one.
The famed HBO documentary series premiered the first episode of its in-season special Tuesday, bringing NFL fans a behind-the-scenes look at each team in the NFC East.
The episode is the first of eight, with subsequent releases planned each Tuesday night until Jan. 20.
The premiere gave viewers a look into Nick Sirianni’s leadership, the Eagles’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys, and explanations for crucial missed plays against the Chicago Bears.
Here’s what you may have missed from the first episode of Hard Knocks: In Season With the NFC East …
The Eagles have lost two in a row — and four of their last eight games — as Nick Sirianni continues to look for answers.
‘Thankful for adversities’
Before any flashy credits or highlights came across the screen, Hard Knocks provided coverage on the reigning champion Eagles, just not in the way Philly fans like.
The show opens with a conversation between Sirianni and Brandon Graham inside the Eagles’ practice facility. Discussing the Eagles’ upset loss to the Cowboys, Sirianni celebrates having to overcome adversity while commenting that players need to focus more on improving instead of complaining.
“Little setback,” Sirianni said. “No one wants to go through adversity until they go through it and be like, ‘Man, I needed that [expletive].’ Like last year, we had to go through that. Unfortunately, we had to go through ’23 to get to where we got last year.
“Same [expletive] here. Sometimes we get like, ‘Man, I don’t like what I am going through right now.’ Then fix it.”
Replied Graham: “It’s good, because it’s shaping up to see who you are, too.”
Following a quick introduction to the docuseries by narrator Liev Schreiber, which included tongue-in-cheek remarks about the Tush Push while the Impressions’ “Keep on Pushing” played in the background, the episode’s focus transitioned back to the Birds’ 21-point blown lead at AT&T Stadium.
Listening to the Cowboys’ sideline, lowlight after lowlight is shown of the Eagles’ poor second-half performance — rubbing salt in a still-fresh wound for Philly fans.
The show checked in with the Cowboys, Giants, and Commanders — who all seemed to show more positivity than the Eagles throughout the episode, despite having a worse record, a head coach fired, and an injured starting quarterback, respectively — before cycling back to left tackle Jordan Mailata addressing media criticism on 94 WIP.
The former seventh-round pick claimed that criticism toward Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, the offensive line, and Saquon Barkley has brought the team closer together — echoing Sirianni’s previous comments regarding adversity.
“It’s bringing us closer,” Mailata said. “It’s bringing us closer, man. We know what we have, and we’ve just got to keep going to work. When crap hits the fan, what I know how to do best is just go back to work and put your head down, and you go out there, and you have another chance on Friday — just play your heart out.”
Sirianni brought the point home in a continuation of his talk with Graham when he doubled down on his positive outlook on the Eagles’ struggles.
“I’m always thankful for adversities because I see every adversity as a way to come together as a football team,” Sirianni told Graham. “It’s not that you’re enjoying it or it’s pleasant going through it, but I am sure thankful for the adversities I went through to be where I am today.”
Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo has received much of the blame from fans, but quarterback Jalen Hurts took responsibility for the team’s loss to the Bears.
Hurts takes the blame
Hard Knocks also brought fans directly into the Birds’ preparation leading up to the team’s 24-15 loss to Chicago on Black Friday. The episode showed a focused Sirianni projecting the Bears logo on the screen at a team meeting, and Hurts delivering his signature “keep the main thing the main thing” line.
There were also small glimpses into Jeff Stoutland’s offensive line meetings, Scot Loeffler’s quarterback room, and Kevin Patullo’s presentation to the offense — providing insight into the team’s sense of urgency in fixing that side of the ball.
“When we look back, we don’t want to say, ‘Oh woulda, coulda, shoulda,’” Patullo said. “[Expletive] that. We’ve got to fix it now.”
When the show reaches the moment when the Eagles have their chance to fix it — last week’s matchup with the Bears — viewers get a glimpse into what actually went wrong for the Birds against Chicago.
First on the docket was Hurts’ uncharacteristically errant pass to DeVonta Smith in the second quarter — one that turned a would-be touchdown into a field-goal attempt — which we now know was caused by a missed hand signal Hurts sent Smith before the snap.
“When I pointed like this — that’s my fault, I thought you was going to settle down,” Hurts said to Smith after the play. “… [Expletive], that’s a play I’ve got to make.”
Hard Knocks showed the conversation between Jalen Hurts and Devonta Smith after Hurts missed a critical throw vs the Bears. pic.twitter.com/jdqYj33aGg
“Y’all keep doing what y’all doing,” Hurts said while addressing his wide receiver group and offensive line. “Here we go, we’re going to finish the next one, that’s a play I make.”
On the verge of scoring once again, another mistake prevented a score — a fumble during a Tush Push play in the third quarter, for which Hurts once again took the blame.
“That’s me,” Hurts said after the play. “[Expletive] I did. Trying to secure the ball and he came straight in there and gutted it out. That’s on me, I’ve got to protect the [expletive] ball.
Wide receiver A.J. Brown had his best game of the season against the Bears, but the Eagles still lost.
Keep an eye on these two
Hard Knocks, known for its drama and fireworks, surprisingly did not feature anything from A.J. Brown after his recent comments regarding the Eagles’ struggle on offense.
But after Brown scored coming out of halftime against the Bears, the star wide receiver did share a brief interaction with Patullo — an interaction that may interest those who want to learn more about the pair’s relationship.
“I told you,” Patullo said after Brown’s touchdown. “You told me, I told you.”
As the series and the Eagles’ offensive woes continue, interactions between Brown and Patullo will continue to be scrutinized. And all Eagles fans can do is hope that Patullo and Brown keep telling each other whatever it takes to put more points on the board.
Nearly eight years after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa together, Connor Barwin and Chris Long are still reaching new heights together with their charity work. On Tuesday evening, the pair hosted their third annual “Team Dinner” at Steak 48 in Philadelphia with proceeds benefiting Barwin’s Make the World Better Foundation and the Chris Long Foundation.
“I love this event,” Barwin said. “It’s one of my favorite events that we do every year. This is the third one. When I played, I loved the team dinner we did every Thursday or Friday night. We always had fun, we always had a good meal, and we eventually always talked about what we could do to play together to help the team win the next game on Sunday. And really, that’s what this is about.
“It’s about bringing a lot of people together in Philly that want to have fun, want to have a good meal, and then we’ll get to raising some money and talking about how we collectively can come together as a team and help make Philly a little better place.”
Barwin, who spent four of his 10 seasons with the Eagles, founded the Make the World Better Foundation in 2013 during his first year in Philly. Its mission is to revitalize public spaces and provide safe outlets for recreation, sports, and arts-based activities.
Long, who spent two of his 11 seasons in Philly, founded the Chris Long Foundation in 2015 with the mission to advance access to clean water and educational equity. After being named the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2018, Long knew he wanted to continue giving back postretirement.
Former Eagles Chris Long, Connor Barwin, and Vinny Curry posing on the red carpet at the third annual “Team Dinner” at Steak 48.
“There were so many guys that deserve that thing,” Long said. “You know, it’s not why you do the things off the field. And when you get an award like that, you kind of, it’s like a nudge. You say ‘All right, well, if you say you’re that person, you better keep working.’ So, I’ve tried to keep doing the work. I looked at it as more of a challenge than like an honor. It was an honor, but I got to keep being that person.”
The “Team Dinner” is an annual event inspired by team dinners from their playing days. Many former Eagles players attended, including Seth Joyner, Harold Carmichael, Ron Jaworski, James Bradberry, Brent Celek, Todd Herremans, and Vinny Curry, along with Eagles security boss Dom DiSandro.
“These are my brothers,” Curry said. “What they do for the city of Philadelphia is amazing. To bring the ‘Team Dinner’ back to Steak 48 into the city of Philadelphia goes to show you how much Philadelphia meant to them.”
Ahead of the dinner, guests could buy raffle tickets to win a number of items — including a V.J. Edgecombe signed jersey, an A.J. Brown signed jersey and Eagles swag bag, and a Jalen Hurts autographed Super Bowl book and Super Bowl LIX blanket.
“Donors don’t walk in the door and feel pressured,” Long said. “The only pressure is to have a good time and kind of recreate the atmosphere of a team dinner from when we played. I think people look forward to it.”
The Eagles gave up 281 rushing yards to the Bears on Friday, the ninth-highest total they’ve allowed in team history. The defense also allowed Chicago to make history of its own: DeAndre Swift and Kyle Monangai became the first pair of Bears running backs to each rush for 100 yards in a game since 1985.
The Eagles’ ground offense didn’t enjoy nearly as much success. Saquon Barkley gained a modest 56 yards on 13 carries and extended his touchdown drought to four games. No other Eagles running back received carries.
The Birds (8-4) have a chance to rebound on Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, although their consecutive losses have resulted in a significant drop across power rankings. Here’s where the Eagles stand heading into Week 14 …
The Ringer: Fifth
Despite giving the Eagles the highest ranking of any list, Diante Lee, who dropped Philly one spot, believes that the team’s conservative philosophy has hindered its ability to win games and develop young players.
“Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni seems to have convinced himself that he’s solved the game of football. He’s got a formula for his team: Avoid turnovers, keep the game simple on offense, and let the defense carry the team home in the second half,” Lee wrote.
“But that formula has caused the entire franchise to stagnate. Outside of young star cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, is there a single player who looks better now than he did a year ago? Outside of a drive or two per game, have we seen anything that looks cohesive from this offense? And most concerning, is there any reason to trust that this team will even have an extra gear come playoff time?”
The loss to the Bears dropped the Eagles four spots in ESPN’s rankings. Tim McManus’ primary concern was the effectiveness of their rushing attack.
“The reigning Offensive Player of the Year has had a difficult time getting going in 2025. He is on pace for 1,048 rushing yards, just about half of his production from his record-breaking 2024 season (2,005),” McManus wrote. “He has faced more stacked boxes and is running behind an offensive line that hasn’t been as buttoned up as last season’s group. The ground game is vital to Philadelphia’s operation. The Eagles need to figure out how to unlock Barkley if they have designs on making another run.”
Barkley is averaging just 3.7 yards per carry this season, a dramatic decline from the 5.8 yards the Penn State alum averaged last season.
Jeff Stoutland’s offensive line has been hit with several injuries this season.
CBS Sports: Seventh
CBS Sports dropped the Eagles just two spots, but pointed out the decline of the team’s offensive and defensive lines.
“They won a Super Bowl being dominant on both lines. This year, it isn’t close to being that good,” Pete Prisco wrote. “What happened to the defense against the Bears?”
The Eagles finished behind the No. 4 Seattle Seahawks, No. 5 Green Bay Packers, and No. 6 Bears, who all won their Week 13 matchups.
The outlet criticized Sirianni and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo’s utilization of their offensive skill position players and expressed doubt that the situation could improve.
“It’s hard to remember a team getting less out of its offensive talent than the 2025 Eagles. They returned four Pro Bowlers, the Super Bowl MVP, and one of the NFL’s best receiver duos in A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith from last year’s offense,” Frank Schwab wrote. “That group is 19th in points scored, 24th in yards gained and 22nd in success rate. Just about every player is performing well below their career standards. And three months into the season, it’s unlikely to fix itself and it’s getting harder to trust the Eagles going deep in the playoffs.”
In Thanksgiving fashion, Chad Graff and Josh Kendall shared the most positive takeaway from every team’s game this past week. But they struggled to find one for the Eagles, and the Birds tumbled six spots from No. 3.
“The Bears defense is just OK, yet the Eagles managed only 317 yards of offense and 15 points at home on Black Friday,” Graff and Kendall wrote. “But we’re looking for positives today, and if this offense can get sorted out — which admittedly feels like a big ask 13 weeks into the season — Philadelphia should be fine.”
Jalen Hurts and the Eagles have already lost four games this season, more than they lost all of last year.
Sports Illustrated: 10th
The biggest drop of the week took place at Sports Illustrated, where Conor Orr moved the Eagles from third to 10th, although it seems like at least some of the blame lies with Birds fans. There wasn’t any analysis about the team, just a mention of the “uniquely pathetic” vandals who egged Patullo’s house.
Eric Edholm mentioned a litany of issues concerning the Eagles’ play and suggested that the NFC East title was back in play.
“Even the tush push doesn’t feel like a team strength now. There are multiple issues with this offense, but the bottom line is that Jalen Hurts must play better. The presumption is that the Eagles have the defense to make a deep playoff run, but the way they defended the run vs. Chicago suggested this unit isn’t nearly as impregnable as its reputation suggests,” Edholm wrote.
“We haven’t seen a repeat divisional champ in the NFC East since the Eagles won their fourth straight crown in 2004, and this year’s Philly team is doing everything it can to extend the drama as long as possible.”
As a result, the Eagles dropped four spots in NFL.com’s rankings and were leapfrogged by the Packers, Bears, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers, and Buffalo Bills.
USA Today’s ranking represented the Eagles’ lowest placement across the board. The outlet dropped the Birds five spots and pointed out the negative correlation between A.J. Brown’s success and the team’s success.
“WR A.J. Brown is averaging 7.3 catches and 91.3 receiving yards (with three TDs) in Philly’s four losses,” Nate Davis wrote. “In his seven other games, all wins, he’s averaging 47.7 yards and 3.9 receptions (with three TDs). So, tell us again how important it is that you get the ball, A.J.?”
On Friday, the Mississippi native had his best game of the season, achieving season highs in receptions (10) and yards (132). Brown also caught both Eagles touchdowns in the loss.
One disgruntled Eagles fan with access to the traffic signs near Lincoln Financial Field chose to display just one message on Monday morning: “Fire Kevin Patullo.”
The broadcast of Friday’s loss to the Bears, the Birds’ second in a row and fourth of the season, caught fans streaming toward the exits after the Bears’ touchdown late in the fourth quarter. But don’t take those early departures for lack of passion.
One fan made a Fire Kevin Patullo website, recounting the Eagles offense’s many struggles so far in 2025.
“We don’t need to pass for 250+ yards a game … but we could,” the site’s intro reads. “We don’t need to rush for 100+ yards a game … but we could. We shouldn’t go 0-8 passing in ANY half … but we did. We should run when we’re up 14 pts in the 2nd half … but we didn’t. We should NEVER run just 1 time in a half … but we did. We shouldn’t run the ball when it’s 3rd and long … but we do.”
Another fan apparently told his new girlfriend that they needed to stop talking until the end of the season, since the Birds have been playing badly ever since they got together.
“I like you a lot so don’t take that as a dismissal, just need to turn our luck around for the Birds and I think you’d understand that too,” he wrote to her on Snapchat.
Like any good Eagles fan, she was fine with it since it was “for the Birds,” she replied. After posting it on Reddit, a few r/Eagles users offered to pay for their next date after the season if the Birds turned their luck around.
Meanwhile, NFL Network analyst Rich Eisen took to YouTube to implore Eagles fans to stay calm, considering the Birds are still 8-4 and extremely likely to make the playoffs.
“I understand, one year, 10-1, making the playoffs and then they got one-and-doned, and you’re afraid that’s going to happen again, because of what I said, of too many mistakes, but everything I just said is fixable,” Eisen said.
With five games left in the regular season, the Eagles are running out of time to fix it.
It really was a Black Friday in Philadelphia after the Eagles suffered another disappointing loss, this one to the Chicago Bears, 24-15.
A few days later, everyone from former Birds to your extended family has spent the holiday weekend talking about where the Eagles offense has gone wrong this year. Here’s what some of the national media are saying …
Nick Sirianni calling plays?
Should Nick Sirianni step in to call plays on offense for the rest of the season? Sirianni hasn’t called plays since the early days as the Birds’ head coach, before Shane Steichen ultimately took over the reins and didn’t look back.
On NFL Countdown on Sunday, Rex Ryan said that Sirianni should consider it. Alex Smith appeared to agree.
“They don’t outcoach anybody on the offensive side of the ball,” Alex Smith said. “A.J. Brown took a lot of flak a few weeks ago, he was the lone bright spot. He doesn’t look that wrong now. There’s clearly something wrong there on offense.”
“They were in a similar situation last year, when all of a sudden they stopped and said, who the hell are we?” Ryan said. “Get back to running the dang football, whatever it takes. You’ve got to get Jalen Hurts involved. You can scheme, too! Ben Johnson schemed the hell out of them, and you’ve got better players than Ben Johnson does.”
Kevin Patullo has been with the Eagles since 2021 but is in his first season as the team’s offensive coordinator.
Nick Foles weighs in
Nick Foles sees everyone’s frustrations with the Eagles offense, but he’s not ready to pull the plug on offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo just for the sake of making a change.
Foles doesn’t believe Sirianni wants to call plays himself, and the solution to the Birds’ offensive woes in the long term might be outside the building.
So, in the short term, Foles pitched a few potential solutions, including moving Patullo up from the sideline into the booth.
“Being a pass game coordinator, [Patullo’s] role was to be in the box, to be in the booth, to oversee what is happening on the field from an up-above perspective, not being on the sidelines with the players and feeling the emotions from the sideline,” Foles said. “He was in a controlled environment to see coverages, to see plays, and to make recommendations for the passing game.”
Foles is incorrect in saying that Patullo worked from the box as passing game coordinator. He actually worked from the sideline, but the point remains.
Being on the sideline surrounded by the players provides a different perspective than being up in the box, which is also where Vic Fangio calls plays from. It’s a less distracting environment, and it can be easier to make adjustments as the drive develops instead of waiting to watch tape on delay.
“Get out of the sideline, get away from the emotions, because that could be clouding your vision,” Foles said. “You have a different perspective from the sideline. You can’t see the coverages as they’re forming. You can’t see the defensive alignments very well.”
Chris Long agreed with Foles that it’s hard to bring in a new coordinator or replace the coordinator at this point in the season.
Brian Daboll was fired as Giants head coach on Nov. 10.
The Eagles could explore bringing in an outside consultant to help improve Hurts and the offense’s performance, but Long is not sure who stands out as a potential candidate aside from fired Giants coach Brian Daboll.
“You look at a lot of these Eagles coordinators that have had success, they’re not homegrown,” Long said. “The ones that are homegrown, they’re just not working out. You’ve got problems everywhere.”
After Super Bowl LIX, Long said many, including himself due to his connection to the Birds, got a bit too “fanboy-ish” about the Eagles and about Hurts’ skill set, and their shortcomings are in full focus now.
“We get so hyperbolic about everything in pro sports,” Long said. “If we’d all just said, the quarterback’s not a perfect quarterback, you have to build around him … It’s not just the roster, because the roster was in pretty good shape when we rolled it out this year. It’s got to be the scheme, too.”
The Washington Post’s opinion section enlisted nine writers to share which American city they think deserves the title of the nation’s best sports city.
Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, Boston — even the likes of Kansas City and Cleveland got a mention. Which city was snubbed? Philadelphia.
Taking a look through the comments of their recent Instagram post promoting the list, not to mention the nearly 800 comments on the column itself, we’re not the only ones who raised an eyebrow at the exclusion of Philly from the list.
So we got nine of our own writers to argue why Philadelphia is the nation’s best sports city. Enjoy.
It means more to us
Mike Sielski, sports columnist
Philadelphia is America’s best sports city because sports — not national sports, not the Olympics, but the teams and athletes here — is the lingua franca of the town and the great connector of the city and its surrounding suburbs and communities. Do you flinch when someone says the name Chico Ruiz or Joe Carter? Do you smile at a random mention of Matt Stairs or Corey Clement? Then you know and love Philadelphia sports.
It’s America’s best sports city because Philadelphia is a provincial, parochial region where the love of and devotion to the teams’ histories and traditions are passed down from one generation to the next — a succession of unbroken bonds over a century or more. Did you sit out on your front stoop on a summer night and listen to Harry and Whitey call a Phillies game over the radio? Do you still sync Merrill and Mike’s broadcast to the TV telecast? Do you know who J.J. Daigneault is? Then you know and love Philadelphia sports.
It is America’s best sports city because you can walk down the street here after an Eagles loss or a Phillies loss or a Sixers loss and know that those teams lost just from the vacant looks on the faces of the passersby. Do you turn up the talk-radio station on those terrible Monday mornings? Do you remember where you were when Kawhi’s fourth bounce fell through the net? Then you know and you live and you die with Philadelphia sports.
Most of all, Philadelphia is America’s best sports city because people here care more and sports here matters more than it does anywhere else. If you don’t believe me, go ahead. Tell a Philadelphia sports fan that your city, your teams, your traditions are better. Go ahead. Dare ya.
Philly fans celebrate the Eagles’ Super Bowl LIX win in near City Hall.
Nobody parties like us
Stephanie Farr, features columnist
Philadelphia is undoubtedly the best sports city in the United States and it has everything to do with our fans, who are as passionate and dedicated as they come. Here “Go Birds” is a greeting, talking trash is an art form, and being a part of it all is totally intoxicating, even if you’re completely sober (which, to be fair, most of us aren’t).
Nobody celebrates a major win like Philly — by partying in the street with Gritty and Ben Franklin impersonators, dancing with Philly Elmo and his drum line, and climbing greased poles. When the Phillies won the NLCS in 2022, I watched Sean “Shrimp” Hagan climb a pole and shotgun seven cans of Twisted Tea thrown to him by the crowd. To his credit, at some point Hagan realized he was too drunk to get down safely and waited for firefighters to bring a ladder.
“It couldn’t have happened without the crowd being so [expletive] Philly,” he told me. “What other city’s first thought when they see a guy on a pole would be to throw him a beer?”
Do our Bacchanalian celebrations border on absolute lawless anarchy? Yes, but if you want to live safe and know how something will end, go watch a Hallmark movie. This is Philly, where we are fueled by the raging fire of a thousand losses — even when we win — and we thrive off the unpredictability of life.
In my early 20s, I lived in Tampa for a brief stint. The downtown area is small enough that all of its neighborhoods are in proximity to each other. My apartment was in a section popular among locals for its dining and nightlife scene. But it was close enough to the hotel district to be in the eye of the storm when the Eagles came to town.
One Saturday evening in late October, we were sitting at a popular outside bar when the place was suddenly overcome by a wave of midnight green. Everywhere you looked, there were packs of Eagles fans who looked like they hadn’t seen the sun in two months. They swaggered through the place in their Brian Dawkins jerseys with zero regard for humanity. They ordered their Bud Lights in multiples of two and yelled Eagles chants at each other as horrified young women clung desperately to each other and wiped errant sloshes of domestic Pilsner off each other’s going-out clothes. A friend of mine stepped off the patio to have a cigarette. He returned with a stunned expression on his face. “An Eagles fan just peed on my foot,” he said with a mixture of anger and respect.
Tampa got the last laugh the next day when Matt Bryant kicked a walk-off field goal from 62 yards out. But I always think of that weekend when people ask me if Philly sports fans are as crazy as their reputation.
An Eagles fan sits on top of the traffic light post at the intersection of Broad and Pine Streets after the team won Super Bowl LIX in February.
There are a lot of different prerequisites that a city needs in order to consider itself a great sports town. For instance, it must be an actual city, one with history and character that stands on its own even without sports. Furthermore, a great sports town requires a certain level of market penetration. Sports must sit atop the pedestal in a way that it doesn’t in places like New York and L.A. There must be a critical mass of folks who are born and raised, which eliminates pretty much any city south of the Mason-Dixon and west of the Mississippi. The list is a short one. Boston, Chicago, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit, maybe Milwaukee.
From there, the thing that sets Philly apart is the people. They are a strange lot, prone to overexcitement and, every now and then, over-indulgence. But, man, do they care. You see it any time one of their teams hits the road. You hear it, too. There is an energy that is difficult to define but impossible not to feel. It’s the secret sauce of this place. And, yeah, it’s the best.
A veteran Eagles reporter wrote recently that last Sunday’s Eagles-Cowboys game was the Birds’ worst ever loss to their rival. They blew a 21-point lead, exposed some glaring flaws, and lost on a walk-off field goal. Fair point. But it was pushed back immediately on social media. You think this loss was bad? That’s what makes Philadelphia a great — maybe the greatest — sports city. We celebrate our wins like no other but we also wear our losses forever. This was a brutal loss but we still remember that botched chip shot on Monday Night Football in 1997. And that blowout loss in the playoffs while we were stuck inside during the Blizzard of ‘96. Oh yeah, remember what happened in 2010?
I don’t know if any city in the U.S. holds onto losses more than Philly. We do that because we care. We lose sleep when the Phillies blow a save, have a bad week if the Eagles lose, still can’t believe they didn’t call the Islanders offside, and are still waiting for Ben Simmons to dunk it. So yeah, that’s why it means more here when the teams do win. Because we care so much when they lose. You can have L.A., Seattle, and Kansas City. I’ll stay in Philly.
A Phillies fan holds up a sign paying tribute to another viral Phillies fan before the team’s 2025 home opener.
We feed off being underdogs
Julia Terruso, politics reporter
Look, I’m not pretending to be neutral here. I went to spring training in Clearwater in pigtails as a child. I fell in love at an Eagles tailgate and flew to London to watch the Phillies play the Mets on my honeymoon. But even non-Philadelphians would be out of their minds not to put us in the top three — let alone the top nine.
Rooting for the Phillies, Sixers, Eagles, and Flyers is a cross-class, cross-generation rite. We’re one of only eight U.S. cities with all four major teams, and our stadiums are actually accessible — yes, Los Angeles, I’m looking at you. Tickets are (mostly) affordable, the crowds are electric, and the fervor is real. We boo because we care. And unlike other cities, we don’t sneer at bandwagoners. The citywide greeting is “Go Birds,” and the uniform is fair game for the lifer who knows about pickle juice and The Process, along with the new Fishtown transplant who couldn’t diagram a wheel play but looks fantastic in kelly green — because everyone looks fantastic in Kelly green.
But the thing that really makes Philly a great sports town is our shared history of heartbreak and near-misses that drives us forward. We’re used to being underestimated. So go ahead, leave us off your list, WaPo. Underdogs run on disrespect, and we’ve got miles to go.
Stand on the South Street bridge at 7 a.m. and you’ll know the time of year, and that says it all. The rivers of medical professionals walking and biking back from their night shifts, and those heading to their morning duties, give it away in unison. Red caps? It must be October. Kelly and midnight green beanies? The NFL playoffs are coming. Blue or black starred jackets? The NBA playoffs are underway and our hearts will soon be broken, again.
I am a Philly transplant who comes from the tradition of European soccer, where rivalry between teams from the same city is the driver of passion. I always thought that there is nothing more electric than winning a derby game, and having your team crowned as the city’s best. But Philadelphia taught me that I was wrong. There is something more electric: a city united, together, declaring love to its teams in every nook and corner.
Jubilant Eagles fans dance around a fire on Broad Street after the Birds beat the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.
Philadelphia isn’t just the best sports city in America (“next year on Broad?”), it’s an organism that breathes sports fandom unlike any other place.
The days of throwing snowballs at Santa or batteries on a hated player are far gone. This is the city that gave a struggling shortstop who just arrived in town a standing ovation, that travels in droves so E-A-G-L-E-S chants come through the broadcast of every away game, and has a community of sickos who rode with its Sixers through one of the weirdest experiments in NBA history.
The electric energy isn’t confined to the city lines. It’s a moment that every Philadelphian cherishes. Don an Eagles hat in any other city in America, or even abroad, and you are more likely than not to lock eyes with a stranger passing by.
“Go Birds,” they inevitably say.
“Go Birds!” you respond.
Nothing beats that. And if you don’t like it. All good. We don’t care.
The Washington Post’s opinion section has been having a rough go of it. Which makes me wonder if this list, too, had to be cleared by the Amazon overlord, and maybe Jeff Bezos just hates Philadelphia?
I mean … Cleveland?
The size and scale of the two recent Eagles parades speak for themselves. The fact that there used to be a jail in the bowels of Veterans Stadium speaks for itself. Attending one Phillies playoff game at Citizens Bank Park would speak for itself. “Go Birds,” is a passing “hello” to a fellow Philadelphian in another town, a phrase of familial camaraderie. Due respect to Los Angeles, a city I love to be and eat in. But the sheer number of sports that happen in a place doesn’t make it a good sports city. That’s not human. People and passion make a place.
The Penn Relays at Franklin Field are one of just a few annual sports traditions in Philadelphia.
We have much more than pro sports
Tommy Rowan, cheesesteak/Philly history expert
A criteria would have helped, but really, any discernible or coherent formula would have really pulled that Washington Post list together. Here, instead, are three reasons why Philadelphia is one of the cornerstone cities in American sports …
History: The fabric of American sport was woven here. The Heisman Trophy is named after John Heisman, who played at Penn. The Phillies are one of the key reasons fans are allowed to keep foul balls that land in the stands. All because an 11-year-old Phillies fan didn’t blink when the team had him thrown in jail for larceny.
Tradition: We’re more than pro sports. We’ve hosted the annual Army-Navy game, and the Dad Vail Regatta, and the Penn Relays. Tennis found an American foothold at the Philadelphia Cricket Club.
Passion: Support is an undergarment. This city has passion. Fandom here is passed down from generation to generation, just like their houses. And sure they’re loud, and they generally take it the worst of any fanbafan base. But they’re vocal, they’re informed, and they care. These teams mean something to these people.
Sports fans start young in Philly, as fandom gets passed down from generation to generation.
We know our stuff
Ariel Simpson, sports trending writer
Oct. 9 was a tragic day for Philly sports fans. The Phillies season ended with a heartbreaking loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Eagles suffered a devastating 34-17 loss to the New York Giants, and the Flyers dropped their season opener to the Florida Panthers.
That very next day, I wandered the streets of Philadelphia in what felt like a walk of shame. The heartbreak could be seen on each fan’s face as they still sported their favorite team’s colors. And when asked about the losses, each fan gave me a full breakdown of what needs to be done in order for the teams to be more successful.
That’s what makes Philly such a great sports city. Not only are the fans passionate, but they are knowledgeable when it comes to their sports teams. Sure, sometimes they may rush to call for a head coach to be fired or boo their own teams, but that’s only because they care so much.
They wear their heart on their sleeves and they expect more from each team. And when they do succeed, they show up and celebrate like no other. If you need an example, look no further than the city greasing its light poles in an attempt to stop fans from climbing them in celebration.
The Eagles face the Chicago Bears on Black Friday still in the driver’s seat in the NFC East, but their magic number to clinch the division remains four games following the Dallas Cowboys’ Thanksgiving win against the Chiefs.
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Of course, the Eagles are playing for higher stakes than simply winning the division. Entering Friday’s game, the Birds hold the No. 2 spot in the NFC, with head-to-head wins against most of the conference’s top teams, including the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers, and Detroit Lions.
The Birds can add the surprising Bears to that list today with a win, while a loss would knock the Eagles down to third place in the NFC with just five more games to go before the playoffs.
The Lions put themselves in a bad position with their loss against the Packers on Thanksgiving. At 7-5, Detroit is suddenly on the outside of the playoffs looking in with a tough schedule that includes games against the Cowboys, Rams, and Bears.
NFC playoff picture
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Week 13: Bears (8-3) at Eagles (8-3)
Where: Lincoln Financial Field
When: 3 p.m., Friday
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video (Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreit, Kaylee Hartung)
TV: Fox29
Radio: 94.1 WIP (Merrill Reese, Mike Quick, Devan Kaney)
It shouldn’t be hard to watch or stream Friday’s game. In addition to simulcasting on Fox 29 in and around Philadelphia, Amazon is streaming the game for free globally on its Prime Video platform.
Amazon’s Richard Sherman says Eagles play designs are ‘pretty pedestrian’
Richard Sherman called the Eagles’ offense predictable and “pedestrian.”
“[Eagles offensive coordinator] Kevin Patullo is probably a great dude, a great coach, but there’s an art to play-calling that not everyone has and it’s not showing up this year,” Foles said.
Richard Sherman agrees.
The five-time Pro Bowl defender turned Thursday Night Football analyst said during a conference call earlier this week the design of many Eagles plays are “pretty pedestrian,” allowing defensive backs to “determine route combinations and route concepts” based on how the Birds line up.
The Eagles have the 24th ranked offense in the NFL entering Friday’s game, among a handful of teams averaging less than 200 passing yards per game. Plus, Saquon Barkley isn’t coming close to repeating last year’s dominant 2,000-yard performance.
“Do I think they can repair their offense? No, I don’t,” Sherman said. “I think Kevin Patullo’s the issue, and unless they replace him, nothing’s going to change. They’re going to go home” early in the playoffs.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Sherman’s colleague at Amazon who spent 17 seasons as an NFL quarterback, played with Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo during his time in Buffalo. Fitzpatrick said it’s up to Patullo and head coach Nick Sirianni to fix “some missteps,” with their receivers, including getting A.J. Brown ”on a few more out cuts” and “in the slot a little bit more.”
“They’ve got to start in the second half of the season here, breaking some of those bad tendencies,” Fitzpatrick said. “Because you do fall in love with certain routes, with certain guys, because they’re such good players.”
On Black Friday, the Eagles will try to bounce back from a loss to the Dallas Cowboys when they host the Chicago Bears for a Week 13 matchup. The last time the teams met was during the 2022 season, a 25-20 road win for the Birds.
Despite a loss that saw the Eagles (8-3) squander a 21-0 lead to their division rivals, they enter Friday’s game as seven-point favorites. The Bears, who are also 8-3, are heading into the game riding a four-game winning streak, with their latest coming over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Will the Eagles bounce back from a loss? Or will the team fall to an NFC North opponent for the first time this season? As both teams prepare, here’s what the Bears are saying about the Birds …
‘This is a heavyweight matchup’
At this time last year, the Bears were on a five-game losing streak heading into a Thanksgiving matchup with the Detroit Lions. This year, Bears fans have more to be excited about, with Chicago winning eight of its last nine games.
Bears safety and Philadelphia native Kevin Byard has history with both sides. After getting released by the Eagles in March 2024, following half a season with the Birds, he signed a two-year deal with the Bears. The 32-year-old defensive back is excited to make his return to one of the most “hostile” environments.
“This is a team that was just in the Super Bowl,” Byard told reporters. “They have a winning culture, they have a winning mentality. We preach 60 minutes. We know they’re going to be a 60-minute team as well. … This is a heavyweight matchup for sure, and obviously we’re going into a hostile environment in a stadium that I played in, played against.
“For example, if their offense goes three-and-out starting the game, they’re going to start booing them. It’s one of those environments where it’s going to be very hostile. So, hopefully we can start fast and kind of get the crowd against their own team.”
Kevin Byard spent the second half of the 2023 season with the Eagles.
‘They’re finding ways to win’
Although the Eagles have struggled to find an identity on offense, Byard isn’t underestimating the defending Super Bowl champs.
“Stats for the entire offense have been down, but they’re finding ways to win,” Byard said. “I mean, look at us, our stats haven’t been great on defense but we’re finding ways to win. … Stats is something we can all look at and judge. But at the end of the day, they’re finding ways to win. I think that’s just a testament of their culture and our culture. So, it’s definitely going to be a challenge for us. Just culture against culture — whose culture is better?”
The Eagles skill positions are full of big names, including Saquon Barkley, A.J. Brown, and DeVonta Smith. Although Barkley and Brown are not putting up the same productive numbers as last season, Byard knows the threat posed by both Barkley and his former Tennessee Titans teammate Brown.
“It’s a huge challenge,” Byard said. “First and foremost, you talk about Saquon Barkley, like you said, he hasn’t had the year that he had last year. But I mean, he’s still a threat every time he touches the ball. He’s a guy that we’re going to have to corral, and I think when you talk about game plan against a team like that, I think he’s definitely priority No. 1, to stop him.
“And then you talk about A.J. and [DeVonta Smith], A.J. is still that guy. You know, I spent four years with him, just watching him on film, he’s very, very talented. But, honestly, if you watch the film, Smitty has been the guy that I think Jalen Hurts has the most chemistry with, receiver-wise. … If we can eliminate those big plays down the field, that would be good.”
Caleb Williams has the Bears playing much better than they were during his rookie season a year ago.
Hurts’ advice to Caleb Williams
The Bears’ second-year quarterback, Caleb Williams, is prepared to compete against a familiar foe on Friday: Hurts. The two have met in the past, including when Williams was getting recruited to Oklahoma as Hurts was on his way out.
Williams reflected on the “wisdom” Hurts shared with him years ago.
“[We talked about how] there’s not many like us in our position — who we are, skin tone, and all these different things — there’s not many like us,” Williams told reporters. “So, just being able to understand the opportunity that we have and I have to maximize that and put myself in the best opportunity possible. It was kind of that type of talk. Jalen, you’ve heard all his bits. He’s pretty motivational when he speaks up here.”
The Bears also say they’ve been planning a way to stop the Eagles’ signature Tush Push. And they already had some practice with the play a week early in their 31-28 win over the Steelers.
The Steelers went into their own Tush Push formation before running the ball to the outside with Kenneth Gainwell, who broke a 55-yard run against the Bears. Now Chicago is preparing to face the original Tush Push.
“Obviously, we saw it twice last week,” said Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. “The thing that makes it more challenging is that they’ve got several plays off of it. It’s a tough play to stop. I think this team runs it better than anybody else in the league. I think the best way to defend it is to not get in those situations — trying to create more third-and-long or fourth-and-long situations. Keeps them out of those situations. It’s certainly a difficult play to stop.
“We do have a plan in place. We feel like it’s a good, solid plan in terms of not only trying to stop that play but all of the plays that come off of it. And that’s what makes it even more difficult to stop.”
For the second year in a row, Vic Fangio’s Eagles defense is one of the best in the NFL.
‘He’s like the Godfather’
Bears head coach Ben Johnson knows he faces a tough challenge when it comes to beating this Eagles defense led by Vic Fangio.
“He’s like the Godfather in a lot of ways,” Johnson told reporters. “He’s kind of taken the lead over in terms of that scheme. … He’s influenced the game significantly.
“I never worked with Vic, but a lot of respect from afar, obviously. The people that have worked with him speak so highly of how he calls a game. He’s usually a step ahead of the opposing play-callers. So, it’ll be a challenge here just to make sure that we’re trying to keep him as off balance as we possibly can.”
Jason Kelce used the latest episode of his New Heights podcast to break down what went wrong for the Eagles on Sunday. After the Birds blew a 21-point lead to fall to the Cowboys, Kelce identified the core of the loss as a limited running game and crumbling second-half offense.
But alongside his brother, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, the former Eagles center also gave fans reason to be optimistic about the team’s potential in the latter part of the season. He also announced a free tailgate for fans before Friday’s game against the Chicago Bears.
Here’s what you missed …
‘New Heights’ to host Black Friday tailgate
Jason Kelce is hoping to stir the energy back up around the Birds before their game against the Bears with a Black Friday tailgate hosted by New Heights. The tailgate will begin at 11 a.m. in Lot K outside Lincoln Financial Field, with free admission for fans on a first-come, first-served basis.
And it sounds like it’s going to be a wild affair.
“I don’t know how many people we can admit or how many people will show up, but we do know we’re going to be drinking, eating, and having a gay old time,” Kelce said. “That’s right, we’ll have food, merch giveaways, photo booth, DJ, games — and of course a belly bucking competition! They’ve allowed us — I never thought legal would let this happen. Thank you to the legal team at Wondery.com and whoever is doing it on our behalf.
“We’ve already picked vetted contestants, so you can’t apply, but you can witness the festivities. If you want to see mostly fat guys rub bellies into each other to see who can win some type of prize that we have yet to determine, if you want to show up and see these bellies get bucked, show up in Lot K on Friday. … We’re going to have a [expletive] blast!“
What’s “belly bucking?” Good question …
Fixing the Eagles offense
When it came to breaking down the Eagles’ collapse on Sunday, Kelce largely blamed the offense’s inability to keep up with the Cowboys in the second half on a severely lacking running game.
Kelce pointed out how Lane Johnson’s absence has further hampered the Eagles’ ground attack. The veteran offensive tackle, who suffered a foot injury during the team’s Week 11 win over Detroit, is expected to be sidelined for several weeks.
“I know it’s very fashionable to blame Kevin Patullo and the play-calling, but the passing game felt like it was pretty good in this one,” Kelce said. “The thing that is really hurting this offense right now is the run game. It has not been clicking for the majority of the year. It’s multifaceted. The offensive line has been banged up, there’s been guys in and out. … It’s been hard to build cohesion as a unit.”
Eagles offensive tackle Fred Johnson has been filling in for injured starter Lane Johnson.
Kelce also addressed the self-inflicted wound of the Eagles’ pair of turnovers in the fourth quarter, granting the Cowboys ample opportunity to make a comeback.
“Outside of the run game, the ultimate thing that killed this team was … the turnovers at the end of the game, which were extremely costly,” Kelce said.
However, the former center attempted to quell some concerns by assuring that the offensive line will improve as the team adjusts from the injury misfortune.
“I think that this offensive line, as they continue to get the reps together, they will block better as a unit, and that will make a huge difference in the ways these plays get executed,” Kelce said. “I feel confident about the Eagles moving forward.”
