In mid-October, Flyers coach Rick Tocchet said the quiet part out loud.
“I know he’s the lightning rod for everybody around here,” he said of Matvei Michkov.
A talented offensive player, the recently turned 21-year-old Russian, who arrived in North America two years earlier than expected, led the Flyers — and all NHL rookies — with 26 goals and finished second on the team with 63 points last season. He also won the league’s rookie of the month award twice, becoming the first Flyer in 30 years to do so.
But this season, Michkov has struggled to find that spark with 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 34 games. He has also taken several unnecessary penalties and seen his ice time decrease from 16 minutes, 41 seconds last season to 14:43 this year.
Although Natural Stat Trick has the Flyers with 51.74% of the shot attempts when Michkov is on the ice — tops on the team — and an expected goal-share of 53.6%, which is No. 2 among players who have played at least five games, he has struggled defensively and shown a tendency to cherry-pick at times.
As Tocchet said, he is a lightning rod, so, of course, he is often a topic of conversation.
On Saturday, the television broadcast caught Michkov, Tocchet, and assistant coach Jaroslav “Yogi” Svejkovský having an animated conversation on the bench. The conversation appeared to happen right after Michkov drew a minor penalty when New York Rangers winger Will Cuylle cross-checked him from behind.
“It happens all the time. It’s not Mich, it’s just a story, because it’s Mich. It wasn’t even an argument. It was about when he should switch, and not with [Denver] Barkey. And he’s getting it, when to switch and when not to on the power play,” Tocchet said, although it’s not clear if he meant to say power play as he did appear to stop himself, and the Flyers were heading to their first power play of the game.
“But that was all. He was just getting frustrated on when to switch and when he shouldn’t switch. I know it’s a lot of media people like to let him do what he wants. But there’s a time to switch and when not to switch, and that’s really what it comes down to.”
It is worth noting that Michkov and Barkey picked up assists on Travis Sanheim’s power-play goal directly following the Russian’s animated conversation with Tocchet.
Michkov has five assists in December but does not have a goal this month. A follow-up question asked the bench boss about Michkov having the right attitude but getting frustrated when he’s not scoring.
Flyers right wing Matvei Michkov, 21, has just 19 points in 34 games this season.
“Guys who want to score goals get frustrated, but you can’t let it affect your overall game,” Tocchet said. “You’ve got to continue to go to the spots, you keep going to the middle, keep getting to that slot area when you already have two guys down low, like — don’t go behind the net — like things like that.
“He’s just got to stay with it, because he’ll get those chances. He had some chances against the Rangers. … Now he’s got [to] play a little faster and separate himself. That’s what it comes down to. You can’t get frustrated, and just keep working.”
Barkey and Michkov switched one time before the bench interaction. It came with 11:49 left in the first period, and it occurred after Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin froze the puck. So was it about switching shifts and the short shifts by Michkov that have been discussed recently?
“We tell our players, when you’re tired, get off. So if he’s tired after 20 seconds, get off. I don’t know. I don’t know what you want me to say. Yeah, he’s getting enough shifts. He’s coming off short because sometimes he’s tired. I don’t know what the big deal of that is,” Tocchet snapped.
The fourth question about Michkov noted that Tocchet and the Russian winger were seen speaking before practice. Does the coach like that he’s willing to work on things, showing his sheer competitiveness?
“We’re 17-10[-7], we have a good record. I’ve answered six Michkov questions. I mean, enough is enough,” Tocchet said.
“We’ve got [Dan] Vladař having a great year. [Jamie] Drysdale is playing really good five-on-five for us. [Cam York’s] doing a really good job. We’ve got a lot of other players playing good and a team game.
“I mean, this is the fifth question. I appreciate it, but you’re trying to make something that it’s not. He’s got to learn to play the game, and he’s trying. He’s a lot better defensively. He’s a lot better playing a team game, and that’s how you win hockey. It’s not about catering to one person. I hate to tell you guys. That’s it.”
Breakaways
Goalie Aleksei Kolosov was sent back to Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Monday morning. Vladař (upper-body injury) and Christian Dvorak (lower-body injury), who both missed Saturday’s game against the Rangers, were at the team’s morning skate. Tocchet expects Dvorak to play, but said Vladař is a game-time decision. … Barkey will make his Xfinity Mobile Arena debut on Monday against the Vancouver Canucks (7:30 p.m., NHLN, NBCSP). … Defenseman Noah Juulsen and forwards Garnet Hathaway and Nic Deslauriers are expected to be healthy scratches.
To play, or not to play, that is the question that will face Eagles coach Nick Sirianni over the final two weeks of the season.
The No. 2 seed in the NFC is still up for grabs, and will be at the time the Eagles kick off Sunday afternoon in Orchard Park, N.Y., for a marquee matchup with the Buffalo Bills. But the seeding could be decided before the Week 18 finale vs. the Washington Commanders, and we know how the Eagles went about their business last season when they rested almost all of their starters in the season finale.
As it pertains to offensive tackle Lane Johnson and defensive tackle Jalen Carter, though, Sirianni will have to weigh risk vs. reward for two of his best players in the trenches. According to a report from ESPN, both players are in line to be available for Sunday’s game vs. the Bills. Carter has missed the last three games after undergoing procedures to both of his shoulders. Johnson, meanwhile, has been out since the first quarter of Week 11 with a Lisfranc sprain in his left foot.
“Every guy is a little different,” Sirianni said Monday. “Every scenario is a little different.”
Offensive tackle Lane Johnson watching his teammates warm up before the Eagles played the Washington Commanders on Saturday.
Sirianni pointed to last season’s finale vs. the New York Giants. The Eagles rested their starters, but tight end Dallas Goedert had been out for more than a month and the Eagles decided to get him on the field for two series at the beginning of the game and threw six targets his way. “That was good for him,” Sirianni said.
“You do think about your past situations and when you’ve been through those things before,” he said. “But you’re trying to do and make the best decision for each guy and everyone’s just a little bit different.”
Carter and Johnson are certainly different, and the Eagles are likely to weigh getting Carter on the field as a higher priority than Johnson given Carter’s early-season struggles with conditioning.
Still, the Eagles will enter Sunday with plenty to play for. There is a realistic path to the No. 2 seed, a spot that would ensure a second home game with a win in the wild-card round. The simplest math is for the Chicago Bears, the current No. 2 seed, to lose their final two games and the Eagles to win their final two. The Bears play at San Francisco in Week 17 before hosting the Lions, who could be in desperation mode, in Week 18.
What’s the math look like?
According to FTN Fantasy‘s playoff projections, the Eagles are at 10.3% to get the No. 2 seed based on thousands of simulations. They’re at 88.7% to stay in the No. 3 spot and have minuscule chances at the No. 1 seed (0.1%) and No. 4 seed (0.9%).
Time will tell how the Eagles approach the last two weeks of the season.
No competition coming for Jake Elliott
Sirianni reiterated his confidence in Jake Elliott after the kicker missed two field goals and had another miss negated by a penalty during Saturday’s win.
Elliott has missed five field goals over the Eagles’ last five games and also has a missed point-after attempt during that stretch. His 70.8% conversion rate (17-for-24) on field goals this season is the lowest of his nine-year NFL career.
Eagles kicker Jake Elliott reacts after missing a 52-yard field goal attempt during the second quarter Saturday.
Sirianni said the Eagles will not be bringing in outside competition. He pointed to Elliott’s struggles late in the season last year and how he rebounded in the Super Bowl as something to draw confidence from.
“All I’ve ever seen him do was get up out of that and rise from that,” Sirianni said. “I have no doubt in my mind of the competitor he is and how mentally tough he is to be able to rise from this situation as well.”
Report: No suspension for Tyler Steen
According to a report from ESPN, there will be no suspensions following the kerfuffle near the end of the Eagles-Commanders game after the Eagles’ two-point conversion. The league will review the play for fines.
The skirmish happened after the successful try that bumped the Eagles’ lead to 29-10, a decision Sirianni said was analytics-based and not an attempt to run up the score, though it appeared that Commanders coach Dan Quinn was not pleased with the choice.
Eagles offensive tackle Fred Johnson and guard Tyler Steen get into a brawl on the field with the Commanders during the fourth quarter Saturday.
In the middle of it all for the Eagles was right guard Tyler Steen, who was ejected for his role in the scuffle.
Sirianni, as he normally does, declined to go into details about his conversations with Steen.
“But we never want anything like that to take place,” he said. “We want to play fast and physical and we want to be able to do that all within the rules of the game. I understand the game gets chippy at times, but we always want to make sure we’re keeping our cool in those scenarios.”
Philadelphia police have arrested a 16-year-old girl and charged her with voluntary manslaughter, after they said she stabbed a man Sunday morning in Roxborough.
Officers who were called to the 500 block of Wartman Street found the 57-year-old man. He had been stabbed multiple timesin between his ribs, police said.
The man, whose name has not been released, was transported to Jefferson-Einstein Hospital, where he died shortly after 10 a.m., police said.
Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said the girl and her mother lived with the man, a family friend, in the Wartman Street home. He said that there was an altercation between the teen and the man, and that the girl then stabbed him multiple times. The teen, he said, also suffered injuries to her face.
Officers took the girl into custody Sunday. In addition to voluntary manslaughter, she has been charged with possessing an instrument of crime. She is being charged as a juvenile.
Vanore said investigators are looking into whether the teen and man may have used drugs together.
Philly aspires to be the cleanest city in the nation. Does that include the sidewalks?
The Center City Residents Association will not renew its contract with Center City District for sidewalk cleaning that is up at the end of this month, the group said in an email to its members.
The City of Philadelphia does not regularly perform sidewalk cleanings, though recently it has conducted occasional sweeps.
The residents association said its board made the decision because of rising costs charged by the Center City District. The new rate would have doubled the proportion of the association’s budget going toward sidewalk cleaning in 2026, from 20% to 41%. The association paid $39,600 for sidewalk cleaning in the most recent fiscal year, according to tax forms.
“We were losing money. It was like, are we going to clean the sidewalks for another year and a half and be dead as an organization?” said association president Nathaniel Margolies.
Hundreds of city workers set out immediately following the Eagles’ four-hour-long victory parade on Feb. 14, cleaning up the mess a million plus fans left behind. Most of the streets and sidewalks along the route were spotless by the next morning.
The residents associationhad a long-standing agreement with the Center City District to extend the district’s sidewalk cleaning operations to cover the entire CCRA catchment area — from John F. Kennedy Boulevard to South Street and from the Schuylkill to South Broad Street — at a favorable rate. The cleanings came the day after trash collection.
Things changed coming out of the pandemic. The Center City District could no longer offer a subsidized rate and its prices climbed.
“We presented a proposal to the CCRA that reflects the cost of the program, and they chose not to renew. Much of CCRA’s membership is located outside of our district’s boundaries; within CCD’s boundaries, sidewalks are cleaned three times a day and power washed during warmer months,” CCD spokesperson JoAnn Loviglio said in a statement.
There were other reasons for CCRA to move on. The cleaning wasn’t making a significant difference on some blocks that already had good trash hygiene, Margolies said, and it didn’t make sense to continue asking half of the association to essentially pay twice for sidewalk cleaning, since they’re covered by CCD regardless.
The residents association has established a Cleanliness Committee to explore other service providers, like Glitter. The popular service positions itself as an affordable option for blocks or neighborhood groups dealing with the same dirty sidewalk problem. Glitter currently cleans 350 blocks that are directly funded by neighbors, typically at $200 per month for weekly cleanings, and another 720 through violence prevention and neighborhood beautification grants, according to its CEO, Brandon Pousley.
Margolies said it was frustrating that so much of the financial responsibility for keeping clean sidewalks falls upon neighborhood groups and individuals, not the city.
In Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s campaign to make Philadelphia the cleanest big city in the nation, her administration has directed resources toward trash collection and curbing illegal dumping. A signature policy has been the introduction of twice-weekly trash pickup, which began in South Philly and Center City last year, and is about to expand to North Philly.
The extra collection day has been met with a mixed response. Some residents have appreciated holding onto less trash and the city said it’s made a difference on illegal dumping and litter. But other residents have complained that the program has put even more trash on the street.
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker poses for a photo opportunity on a sanitation truck at the Intersection of 1300 block of S. 21st St. and Point Breeze Avenue after a 2024 news conference to announce twice-weekly trash pickups.
“If you’re gonna add a second trash day without fixing the functional problems of the system, you’re going to create more litter,” said Nic Esposito, the former director of Mayor Jim Kenney’s Zero Waste and Litter Cabinet.
The city’s Office of Clean and Green Initiatives did not respond to a request for comment.
Esposito said ideally, there would be a balance of responsibility between the city and its residents to making Philly cleaner. He said hebelieves that when people see the city government demonstrating care, it motivates residents to get more involved.
“That’s what makes Philly so amazing. But it really wears on people when you’re trying to do that and before you can even do it, your street’s filthy … why are we expending our hard-earned money to have to do something as basic as cleaning streets?” he said.
As CCRA weighs what to do about its sidewalks, its cleanliness committee will also advocate with the city, landlords, businesses, and other residents to build better habits and rule enforcement. Margolies said he’s had positive experiences working with the city’s Office of Clean and Green Initiatives, and they have been responsive to residents’ needs.
Residents have expressed disappointment at the sidewalk cleaning service going away, but once he explains the financial situation, they usually understand, he said. But it’s unclear how long their patience will last if litter piles up.
“When you look at the quality-of-life [issues] in the neighborhood, they change as time goes on … the real consistent one over time is trash and cleanliness. It really grates people,” Margolies said.
Philadelphia police are looking to question a 39-year-old man in connection with the shooting of a mother and her 5-month-old baby inside their West Philadelphia home over the weekend, according to a law enforcement source.
Investigators have identified Faheem Weaver as a suspect in the shooting of his daughter and her mother early Sunday morning, said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
The woman and baby — identified by family members as Alayiah Hill and Yuri Weaver — were asleep inside their home on the 1500 block of North Robinson Street when, around 4 a.m., someone approached the door and sprayed black paint over their Ring camera, said Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore.
Police believe the gunman who shot a mother and her baby in West Philadelphia Sunday morning spray-painted the home’s ring camera before entering the home.
The gunman then entered the rowhouse and shot Hill multiple times in the stomach, and the baby once in the leg, Vanore said. Both were expected to survive, he said, but the mother remained hospitalized in critical condition Monday morning.
A warrant has not been issued for anyone’s arrest in the shooting, Vanore said, and the investigation continues.
Hill’s family could not be reached Monday.
Court records show that Weaver, of East Norriton in Montgomery County, has a history of domestic violence, and is currently out on bail after he was charged in October with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, making terroristic threats, and related crimes.
In that incident, Weaver is accused of attacking Hill inside of her Robinson Street home in late August. Hill told police that around 7 a.m., her ex-boyfriend kicked her down the stairs, and when she grabbed a two-by-four piece of wood to defend herself, he overpowered her, grabbed the wooden panel, and beat her legs with it, causing multiple lacerations, according to the affidavit of probable cause for his arrest.
A warrant was issued for Weaver’s arrest on Oct. 2, and he was taken into custody and charged Oct. 14. (It was not immediately clear why the warrant for the August incident was not issued until October.)
Bail magistrate Patrick Stack set bail at $75,000, and Weaver immediately posted the necessary $7,500 cash to be released, court records show.
The shooting comes as violence across Philadelphia has declined considerably in the last two years, with the city on track to record the fewest homicides since the 1960s. Still, shootings continue to occur in pockets of the city that have long experienced violence — and seen higher rates of poverty, unemployment, and other health issues.
Domestic-related attacks continue to be of concern to law enforcement officials.
Staff writer Jillian Kramer contributed to this reporting.
Days before his memoir is set to hit shelves Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will kick off his book tour at Philadelphia’s Parkway Central Library on Jan. 24.
Shapiro will swing through Philadelphia, New York and Washington, D.C., in the final week of January to promote his book Where We Keep the Light: Stories from a Life of Service, according to events posted online.
The tour and the book, set for release Jan. 27, will fuel speculation about a potential presidential run in 2028 as Shapiro works to expand his national profile as he also seeks reelection in Pennsylvania next year.
The forthcomingmemoir is expected to detail his life and political career, including the attempted arson attack on the governor’s mansion while he, and his family, slept inside earlier this year on Passover.
Shapiro, who grew up in Montgomery County and first forged his political brand there, has become a leading figure in the national Democratic Party. The memoir will delve into his vetting to serve as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate last year, according to the publicized summary.
The Pennsylvania governor, Harris wrote, would be unable to “settle for a role as number two” and questioned her about whether he could get Pennsylvanian’s artwork in the vice president’s residence.
The Democratic senator, who has publicly feuded with the governor, described the tension between Pennsylvania’s two top Democrats, which traces back to their time together on the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons when Fetterman was lieutenant governor and Shapiro was state attorney general.
It’s unclear whether Shapiro will discuss his relationship with Fetterman in the memoir.
Shapiro’s book tour will kick off at a 3 p.m. event at the Parkway Central Library on Jan. 24. He will also speak at the Kauffman Concert Hall in New York on Jan. 27 and Sixth and I, a historic synagogue and Jewish cultural center in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 29.
As Philadelphia’s largest visual arts institution heads into the new year, it does so shaken by disorder and strife — reeling under a drama as extraordinary in substance as the public nature with which it is playing out.
In a recent court filing from Suda’s legal team, the ousted director was described as a “visionary leader” recruited to “save a struggling museum.” Her efforts, the filing reads, “collided with a small, corrupt Board faction determined to preserve the status quo.”
Daniel H. Weiss, director and CEO of the Philadelphia Art Museum
All this comes after three years of organizational turbulence that has left staff angry and bewildered.
“There’s a lot of nervousness about what’s to come now,” said one longtime staffer. “It’s been so chaotic for so long. Nobody feels steady. We’re supposed to be just chugging along like business as usual, but nothing feels stable.”
Though Weiss started at the museum this month, he will also maintain his position as an art history professor at Johns Hopkins University though May 2026.
Among the challenges facing Weiss: depressed attendance, an operating deficit, low staff morale, deferred maintenance on existing buildings, and questions about how to prioritize stalled expansion plans.
This account is based on interviews with former and current staffers, both union and nonunion, ranging from curatorial affairs to finance and operations. All of them spoke on condition they not be named.
Visitors services staff member Tiago Segundo works the admissions counter at the west entrance of the Philadelphia Art Museum, Oct. 6, 2025.
Staff shortage
Weiss will have to contend with a shortage of staff — which has dropped from 500 in 2019 to 375 today — following years of significant employee turnover.
During Suda’s tenure, at least 60 employees — many from the senior executive team — were fired, laid off, or pressured to leave across departments. These include human resources, curatorial, digital content, communications, facilities, conservation, the library, visitor services, and more, according to museum insiders.
Suddenly gone in the fall of 2024 without explanation to the staff was Carlos Basualdo, earlier promoted by Suda to deputy director and the museum’s first-ever chief curator; he was highly respected and held several important relationships with collectors and top international artists like Jasper Johns and Bruce Nauman.
Basualdo was named director of the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas in April.
Curator Kathryn B. Hiesinger, who had been with the museum for 53 years, had talked to Suda in the summer of 2023 about her desire to retire at some point, and discussed ideas about winding down her tenure.
“She said it all sounded very reasonable,” said Hiesinger, 82, in a recent interview.
Several months later, Hiesinger said her computer stopped working and she was called into Suda’s office. A woman Hiesinger didn’t know — who turned out to be from human resources — and Suda handed her a sheath of papers, which she was asked to sign.
“I didn’t realize I was being fired,” Hiesinger said. “I was actually quite shocked by the whole way it was handled. It was so unnecessary. All she needed to do was say, ‘I think it’s time for you to retire; let’s see how we can make it work.’ But it was just like that — shut down the computer, call me into the office, and sign the papers, and that was it.”
A few weeks later, Suda called Hiesinger to apologize after museum leaders intervened. She was given the title of senior curator emeritus of European decorative arts and was told she would be allowed to complete her pending projects for the museum.
Hiesinger has had no official contact with the museum since.
Among others whostopped working at the museum during Suda’s tenure, several were made to sign nondisclosure agreements and could not speak to the media.
At the museum’s “Head to Toe: African and Asian Wearables” display, Oct. 6, 2025
A declining reputation
For staffers who have remained, there is a sense of internal disorganization.
“We’ve had three reorganizations within three years, and we were only given an org chart [and] an understanding of it in the last couple months,” said a longtime staffer.
Ultimately, the staffers The Inquirer interviewed believe the reputation of the museum has diminished over the years. Colleagues in the larger museum world, another staffer said, “look at me sideways, because this place has gotten such a bad rap … we’ve become a joke.”
Low morale has been a longstanding issue.
In her lawsuit, Suda detailed two instances of board members allegedly “yelling and berating staff.”
At one event, an unnamed board member “verbally assaulted a Museum employee,” the suit said, leading to a formal complaint. The board member later apologized to the staffer.
The second incident reportedly happened in the winter of 2024 when the museum hosted two simultaneous events for major donor Bank of America and a group invited by Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson.
According to the lawsuit, board member Melissa Heller was allegedly “berating staff, cursing, and shouting that the team was unprepared.” Suda alleged that a Bank of America representative “witnessed this awful altercation” and called her to discuss it. Board chair Ellen T. Caplan spoke to Heller about it and “declared the matter closed.”
Suda’s lawsuit also recounted an incident when former board chair Leslie Anne Miller allegedly screamed and cursed at Suda.
Miller declined to comment and Heller did not respond to The Inquirer’s request for comment.
Several employees said Suda regularly engaged in similar behavior herself.
Sasha Suda, former director of the Philadelphia Art Museum, at the museum on Jan. 30, 2024.
“Sasha has done the same thing, [being] verbally abusive to staff, yelling at them, telling them that nobody likes them and people don’t want to work with them,” said the longtime staffer who spoke to the museum’s recent reorganizations.
The staffer worried about the museum’s diminishing reputation also claimed that the programming team became less autonomous and more risk-averse under Suda.
Managers, the staffer said, use threats of dismissal and public humiliation, leading curators and others to feel that their jobs depend solely on the success or failure of an exhibit. Staff members are wary of Suda’s executives continuing this culture of insecurity.
“People are afraid to do their work. Curators are afraid to put on exhibitions. They’re afraid to spend money,” the staffer said. “I feel like my work has ground to a near halt. I do a fraction of what I used to do, just in a very dysfunctional way now.”
The museum now puts on fewer of its own shows,a departure from previous administrations. Some of the biggest exhibits in recent years, like “The Time Is Always Now” and “Dreamworld: Surrealism at 100,” have been touring shows organized elsewhere and adapted for the museum.
A forthcoming programmatic highlight is the show “A Nation of Artists.” Featuring art from the family collection of Phillies managing partner John Middleton, the show is scheduled to run at the museum April 12, 2026, to July 5, 2027. It was conceived before Suda’s time at the museum.
Tourists pose with “Rocky” statue on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum, Thursday, September 11, 2025.
Ongoing financial struggles
Over the last several years, the nearly 150-year-old museum has operated with a persistent deficit.
In 2025, that number was forecast as around $2 million on a budget of $62 million. The fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, was the museum’s last period with no deficit. Suda began her tenure as director and CEO in September 2022.
Attendance has not rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. As of Nov. 30, the museum was still falling short of its goal for the fiscal year, clocking 266,282 visitors against a to-date goal of 306,750. Its total goal for the fiscal year — which goes through June 30 — is 731,000. (All of these numbers include not just visitors, but also school groups and people attending special events.)
And even that goal is a considerable downgrade from previous ambitions. A decade ago, the museum in its strategic plan stated the goal of increasing attendance to a million visitors per year within five years.
The museum’s widely panned rebrand and name change in October has proven divisive externally and internally. The campaign unveiled a new logo and changed the name of the institution from Philadelphia Museum of Art to Philadelphia Art Museum. Its cost totaled more than $1 million, according to two sources familiar with the details who spoke on the condition of not being named. Leaders hoped the rebrand would drive up attendance and cut down current operating deficits; the impact remains to be seen.
Suda’s lawsuit, staff worry, could worsen the financial outlook.
“We’re already broke as an institution. We could have a messy lawsuit that really takes a lot of funding away,” said the longtime staffer.
Adam Rizzo, former president of the Art Museum union, an affiliate of AFSCME DC47, waving to a honking supporter on the morning museum employees returned to work after a strike in 2022.
A new contract ratified in July 2025 ensured 3% annual pay raises and increased parental leave from four weeks to eight. But a number of grievances remain unresolved. The PMA Union, part of AFSCME Local 397, which represents Philadelphia culture workers, did not comment for this story.
After their boss was fired earlier this year, a staffer said, they were expected to take on extra responsibilities, with the promise of an hourly wage increase. Eight months later, the employee has not received that compensation and has been working with the union to address the problem.
“What they would rather do is have me go to the union, grieve it, and get the lawyers involved, and that way they can drag it out for another like six to eight months and not have to pay me,” the staffer said. “But they would still have to pay me all the back pay. It’s just them dragging their feet and penalizing people. To be honest, if they get me the higher end of [the raise], it’s only 90 cents extra.”
A museum spokesperson could not respond to this claim, deeming it “a personnel matter.”
Several other staffers have had similar experiences. Under the new leadership, they hope to have these disputes resolved amicably without the need of a grievance process.
A 2013 photo of then-Swarthmore College president Rebecca Chopp showing off a copy of “Remaking College” at the inauguration of president Daniel H. Weiss at Haverford College, who is now director and CEO of the Philadelphia Art Museum.
What comes next
Weiss declined to be interviewed about specifics of his tasks and priorities, but the museum released a general statement:
“Daniel Weiss was appointed for his extensive leadership experience at major educational and cultural institutions. He began his tenure only weeks ago, and he is focused on learning the nuances of the museum’s ongoing operations regarding its programming, education initiatives, fundraising, and strategic planning. Mr. Weiss is currently working with senior staff to review key priorities and will address updates in the new year.”
Amid the leadership crisis and transition, staff has been kept mostly in the dark with little communication. The staffer seeking a raise shared that during the interim they received invitations for hot chocolate and parfait socials from human resources.
“It’s what the senior management do. That’s their usual MO, like, ‘Oh, well, have a cupcake,’” they said. “They treat us all like children, or like we’re all dumb. It’s pretty insulting.”
Weiss officially began his tenure on Dec. 1 but held an all-staff meeting before Thanksgiving. One staffer who attended said Weiss “said all the right things” so they are feeling “cautiously optimistic.”
“Everything he’s doing, he’s doing with such integrity. It’s heartwarming,” said a member of the curatorial affairs division.
But, they cautioned, “he’s going to lose people’s optimism if he doesn’t make any moves soon.”
This year, renters were burdened by housing costs, pessimistic about the economy, and less likely to say homeownership is part of the American dream, according to a survey by the national rental listing platform Zumper.
Zumper surveyed more than 6,000 renters across the country as part of its annual report about the state of renting. The report gets at renters’ feelings and behaviors and evolving trends.
Affordability remains a challenge for renters, even as more apartments flooded markets in recent years, giving renters more options and negotiating power and cooling rent growth. In Philadelphia, the median asking rent in December for a one-bedroom home — $1,490 — was down about 2% from the same time last year, according to Zumper.
The report also gives insights into what renters want. Almost one in five renters who were surveyed said access to outdoor space is a top-three priority when choosing a home. About one in four renters said eco-friendly features were important.
And almost half of renters — 45% — said they have pets, from cats and dogs to lizards and iguanas. In an analysis published last year, Zillow found that landlords who allow pets rent their homes faster.
Here are three takeaways from Zumper’s report on the state of renting in 2025.
Renters are struggling
Roughly three in five surveyed renters are cost burdened. That means they spend more than 30% of their income on rent. But the average renter said they spend 40%.
Renters don’t feel great about the economy. Four in five said they are uncertain or not confident about it, and about two-thirds said they think the country is in a recession.
One in five renters said they moved to lower their cost of living.
Almost three in four renters said they save 15% of their income or less every month. About one in four have student loans, and almost half have credit card debt. That all makes it difficult to cover emergencies or save for future plans, such as homeownership.
Three in four renters said 2025 was not a good time to buy a home.
Fewer renters dream of homeownership
In 2021, 27% of surveyed renters said homeownership was not part of the American dream. That share has grown to 34% this year.
And now 60% of renters say the new American dream means being “untethered” from homeownership, Zumper’s report said. And 30% of renters said they do not ever plan to buy a home.
These shifts “reflect both economic pressures and changing cultural values,” according to Zumper’s report.
The older that surveyed renters were, the less likely they were to say they would ever buy a home. Baby boomers also were the generation least likely to say that homeownership is part of the American dream.
The top five cities that renters said they were moving to include one in the Northeast and two in California.
The most popular city for a move was Los Angeles. Zumper cited the city’s climate and residents’ lifestyles.
Next on the list was Atlanta, followed by New York City, San Francisco, and Charlotte, N.C.
The report said Atlanta and Charlotte offer growing job markets and affordability compared to other coastal cities. It said New York’s high rents were probably why the city wasn’t higher on renters’ list.
And renters were attracted to San Francisco in part because of its tech scene.
After a shift to remote work during the pandemic, more workers now need to go into an office at least some of the time. In 2021, Zumper’s survey found that about 25% of renters only worked from home. That share is down to 12%.
So it’s not a surprise that renters said they were moving to cities that are major job centers. A commute was the third-most-cited deciding factor for renters’ locations.
City officials want New Year’s Eve to set the tone for what’s slated to be a year of blockbuster celebrations for the country’s 250th birthday.
“We want the city to feel the excitement, and quite frankly, the potential of 2026 from the very beginning,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker in a Monday news conference that laid out the details of the New Year’s festivities and hyped up the public for other events such as the FIFA World Cup and the 2026 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.
The city will host its first-ever New Year’s Eve concert featuring LL Cool J, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Los Angeles rock band Dorothy, and Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts graduate Adam Blackstone — no tickets required and free.
An image of New Year’s Eve concert headliner LL Cool J is under portraits of former mayors in the Mayor’s Reception Room at City Hall.
The Ben Franklin Parkway will open at 6 p.m. so people can have enough time to get through security scanners before the concert kicks off at 8 p.m. In all, some 25,000 people are expected to fit in the secure perimeter, according to event planners.
Blackstone will premiere his new song, “Brotherly Love,” and the music will keep going until the countdown and fireworks.
The Delaware River Waterfront Corp., which has operated a barge full of fireworks for approximately 30 years, will be kicking up the pyrotechnics a notch with three barges. As usual, there will be two fireworks shows along the river, one at 6 p.m. and another at midnight.
“From Spruce Street Harbor Park to Cherry Street Pier, from Pennsport to Port Richmond, from the Parkway to the waterfront, we are going to light up the Philly sky for 2026,” said DRWC president and CEO Joseph Forkin.
People can take part in an assortment of family-friendly activities at Cherry Street Pier and Independence Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest, which are ticketed experiences. A replica of the Liberty Bell will leave the National Liberty Museum for the night to ring in the new year at the pier.
Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said police will be out in full force — as is the norm, specific numbers of officers deployed were not disclosed — and reminded the public to celebrate safely, and leave the weapons at home if they’re going to the concert. Bethel also encouraged people to ditch the dangerous tradition of celebratory gunfire.
Bethel noted the 1999 case of Joe Jaskolka, only 11 years old at the time, who was struck in the head by so-called celebratory fire.
“Get your pots and pans and bang the pans,” Bethel said, reminding residents that what goes up must come down.
Fire Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson offered a similar safety warning regarding fireworks: Leave it to the professionals. Even sparklers aren’t safe, he said. Though often seen as a safe alternative for young people, Thompson said they are not, burning at 1,500 degrees.
Still, officials feel confident that New Year’s Eve celebrations will be a boon for Philadelphia’s spirits and ideally the economy, though Parker said the final price tag was not yet available — a report on the cost and return on investment will be available after the event is done, she said.
Yet New Year’s Eve is only the beginning and a bit of a test run for the rest of the year.
The very next day, the Mummers strut on Broad Street with plumes and satin with a brass accompaniment.
After that, it’ll be a spate of sporting events and conventions, on top of already scheduled events like Wawa Welcome America.
Jennifer Nagle, with the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the year is already looking to be a busy one for hotels and that new traditions, such as the New Year’s Eve concert, along with external recognition from places like the Michelin Guide, are placing the city on the “national and global stage.”
Nagle said 1.5 million room nights are set to be booked in Philadelphia. Visitors are additionally projected to spend $950 million, which will result in $1 billion in economic impact.
The Quaker City String Band performs before a news conference where city officials shared details on how Philadelphians and visitors can ring in the New Year and celebrate the official kickoff of the nation’s 250th anniversary,
Eagles GM Howie Roseman and owner Jeffrey Lurie make the big decisions, and most of their decisions in the past five years turned out to be sound. But they didn’t take a single snap, run a meeting, or call a play during the Eagles’ five consecutive playoff runs, culminating Saturday in the first back-to-back NFC East championships since Andy Reid’s Eagles did it four times from 2001-04.
Five straight postseason runs ties those Reid-era Eagles for most consecutive playoff appearances. It also is the longest active streak, technically, but Buffalo (six straight from 2019-24) and Tampa Bay (five straight) both have a chance to extend theirs. Kansas City’s 10-year run, which is second only to the Patriots’ 11-year run, just ended; the Eagles’ win in KC on Sept. 14 helped to exclude Reid and his Chiefs.
In all cases, consistent excellence and dedication have pushed a wealth of talent to accomplish what is every NFL team’s goal at the start of every season. These are the front line people who were a part of it in Philly for all of the last five years:
Nick Sirianni, whose coaching ability far outstripped anyone’s expectations. On Saturday, he tied George Seifert as the coach with the most regular-season and playoff wins in his first five seasons as a head coach in the Super Bowl era, but Sirianni’s 64 wins are much more impressive than Seifert’s. Seifert inherited a Super Bowl team with legends all over the 49ers roster. Sirianni inherited Jalen Reagor.
Jalen Hurts, whose quarterbacking ability far outstripped anyone’s expectations. His 61 wins, including playoffs, rank third behind the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and the Bills’ Josh Allen.
Lane Johnson, right tackle, who might be the best Eagle ever.
DeVonta Smith, wide receiver, who already is the Eagles’ all-time leader in playoff receiving yards with 595.
Landon Dickerson, left guard, part of the best left side in Eagles offensive line history.
Jordan Mailata, left tackle, the other part of the best left side in Eagles offensive line history.
Brandon Graham, defensive lineman, who was drafted in 2010, retired after 2024, unretired in mid-2025, changed positions from end to tackle two weeks ago, and has three sacks since.
Jake Elliott, who has missed five of his last 11 kicks, but who set a Super Bowl record in February with 16 points when he made four field goals in New Orleans.
Dallas Goedert, tight end, whose 52 postseason catches are a franchise record.
Jeff Stoutland, the offensive line coach and the best assistant in the history of Philadelphia.
Michael Clay, special teams coordinator, who entered the NFL coaching ranks in 2014 thanks to former Eagles coach Chip Kelly, who should be credited for a lot of changes in Eagles culture.
Kevin Patullo, first-year offensive coordinator, former passing game coordinator, and Sirianni’s longtime majordomo. Currently, he is unpopular.
Jemal Singleton, running backs coach and current assistant head coach who has overseen the best seasons of Saquon Barkley, D’Andre Swift, and Miles Sanders.
Jason Michael, the tight ends coach who made Goedert a top-five tight end and helped sixth-rounder Grant Calcaterra last for four years in the NFL.
Aaron Moorehead, the receivers coach tasked with keeping A.J. Brown in line.
Jeremiah Washburn, who has coached edge rushers including Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt, Jaelan Phillips, and Josh Sweat. Also Bryce Huff and Joshua Uche.
“Big” Dom DiSandro, security chief, Howie’s adviser, game-day and sideline sheriff, whose basic job it is to keep everybody safe and out of trouble.
Honorable mention: Lurie and Roseman delegate liberally, and their scouts and support staff are remarkably loyal and proficient.
DK Metcalf’s swing at fan costs Steelers
Late in the second quarter of their game in Detroit, Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf approached a blue-wigged Lions fan in the stands and exchanged words. He then grabbed the fan’s shirt, pulled the fan down closer to him, then appeared to try and strike the fan as he released the fan’s shirt and walked away. Metcalf, through reported sources, claimed the fan, with whom he interacted during last year’s game, used a racial slur and also insulted Metcalf’s mother.
Metcalf remained in the game — officials afterward said they didn’t see it happen. The league apparently did not believe Metcalf’s explanation of provocation or didn’t believe it warranted his action.
He was suspended (as always, without pay, in this case $555,556) for the Steelers’ last two games, which could be devastating. The Steelers, 9-6 and atop the AFC North, face the Browns, then the 7-8 Ravens to finish the year. Metcalf plans to appeal the decision.
Social media, Rams fans, and Lions fans nearly shared a group embolism after several unusual plays with intricate rules applications affected the outcomes of games with significant playoff implications — plays on which officials ultimately landed on the correct calls, with no room for argument.
On Thursday night, the Seahawks were granted a two-point conversion that tied their game with the Rams, 30-30, on a bizarre sequence:
Sam Darnold threw a backward pass to Zach Charbonnet, which deflected off Rams linebacker Jared Verse’s hand, then his helmet. The second deflection sent the ball forward, just over the goal line. As Charbonnet dejectedly retrieved the ball, a whistle blew.
Officials gathered to discuss the play and they ruled that, even though the whistle blew, the ball remained live. Further, since there is a distinction between a backward pass and a fumble — the offense cannot advance a fumble on a two-point conversion — Charbonnet’s recovery was valid.
Not only did the refs get this right, TV rules analyst Terry McAulay immediately explained why officials were discussing the play and he accurately predicted a reversal. Minutes later, the Football Zebras account took to Twitter/X and explained the intricacies of the determination.
On all 2PCs, the 2-minute fumble rule is in effect (regardless of the time on the clock). This may be a statistical fumble, but the ruling in replay is a backward pass muffed forward. Therefore it is a legal recovery. If it is a rulebook-defined fumble, the offense cannot score 2
If you’re interested, early Friday morning McAulay used his own entertaining Twitter/X account to further explain and defend his comments and opinion, including a quote-tweet of one of his posts from 2023, which explains the rules and emphasizes the confusion regarding the whistle. This includes a reply to an esteemed, retired Inquirer writer who covered the Eagles.
NFL players and coaches should know this rule and most do, which is why we see players attempting to recover loose balls on the ground all the time after the play has been ruled dead, regardless of a whistle being blown or not.
You might not agree with the rules enforced here, but they have existed for a long time, and they were appropriately applied. That said, I understand the outrage. I’ve been covering the NFL for 35 years and I’ll admit that I wasn’t sure what I was watching. I am sure, however, that, between the nuances of the backward pass and the whistle, I would have gotten at least part of it wrong.
The refs, in the end, did not.
Notably, this all happened with more than six minutes to play in regulation. Each team had three more possessions before overtime, so the conversion didn’t directly determine the winner. Each team scored a touchdown in overtime, and after the Seahawks scored the answering TD they were successful with a bold, if benign, two-point conversion. The win put them at 12-3, gave them the current top seed in the NFC, and the lead in the NFC West over the 11-4 Rams.
On Sunday evening, another bizarre play did determine the winner of the Steelers-Lions game, with possibly even greater playoff consequences that included a third team.
The Lions drove to the Steelers’ 1-yard line with 25 seconds to play, trailing by five points. They scored a touchdown on the next play, but it was nullified by offensive pass interference on Jameson Williams, called for an illegal pick on a Steelers defender. Good call.
Two plays later, the final play of the game, Jared Goff hit Amon-Ra St. Brown near the goal line. St. Brown was stopped but not declared down; instead, he lateraled to Goff, who vaulted into the end zone for a touchdown after time expired.
A lengthy discussion determined that St. Brown had indeed committed offensive pass interference before the catch. The penalty nullified the touchdown. Since time had expired, the game was over.
The fallout: The Steelers clinched a playoff spot for the 49ers and essentially ended the Lions’ season, since, due to tiebreaker rules, the 8-7 Lions now cannot catch the 10-4 49ers in the wild-card race. The Steelers, now 9-6, also greatly improved their own postseason hopes with a crazy 29-24 win in Detroit, where they were seven-point underdogs.
Anyway, kudos, refs.
Then, on Sunday Night Football, as if to spite their few supporters, officials failed to call a blatant pass interference penalty against the Ravens late in the Patriots’ comeback win at Baltimore, probably the worst missed call of the year. The Pats still scored on that drive and won the game, but come on, fellas.
Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, and Terry McAulay voice their shock about pass interference not being called against the Ravens on a Patriots deep ball. 🏈🦓🎙️ #NFL#SNFpic.twitter.com/CEGfOgTVA5
The Bears’ comeback win over the Packers on Saturday night virtually locked the Eagles into the No. 3 seed behind the Seahawks (12-3) and the Bears (11-4). … The Chiefs could be moving from Missouri to Kansas to secure a new stadium, with an announcement coming as soon as Monday afternoon. … The Patriots’ win not only locked in their first playoff berth since 2021, it gave them a 12-3 record, same as the Broncos, who lost in Jacksonville (11-4), though the Patriots lose the top-seed tiebreaker against the Broncos (common opponents). … The Jags have won six in a row.
#Eagles playoff scenarios! (updated after SEA win over LAR)
In Week 16, Eagles would clinch…
NFC East with: [PHI win] *or* [DAL loss] *or* [PHI tie + DAL tie]
at least NFC # 3 seed with: [PHI win + CAR loss/tie]
