Bruce Brown scored 19 points and got the winning bucket in overtime off a goaltending call on Joel Embiid, and Jalen Pickett had 29 points to lead the short-handed Denver Nuggets to a 125-124 win over the 76ers on Monday night.
Embiid was whistled for the decisive goaltend when he tried to block Brown’s running layup with 5.3 seconds left. Tyrese Maxey missed a winning floater for the Sixers at the horn.
Embiid scored 32 points — the fourth time in his last eight games he has scored 30 — and Maxey had 28.
The Nuggets played without three-time MVP Nikola Jokic — out at least until the end of the month with a with a hyperextended left knee — Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun and others a night after a loss at Brooklyn.
The entire regular starting lineup sat out, and the Nuggets had only nine available players.
Sixers guard VJ Edgecombe drives to the basket against Denver Nuggets forward Zeke Nnaji (right) during the second quarter on Monday.
Peyton Watson added 24 points for Denver.
The Nuggets refused to use their lighter roster as an excuse to pack it in against the Sixers.
Hunter Tyson converted a four-point play that gave Denver a 102-100 lead in the fourth and Pickett followed with a two-footer that forced the Sixers into a timeout and served as the highlights of a 14-0 run.
Brown snapped a tie game with a three-pointer and made 2 of 3 free throws for a 120-115 lead when he was fouled on a three-pointer on the next possession. That miss in the middle doomed Denver in regulation.
VJ Edgecombe hit a three that made it 120-118 and Maxey tied the game on a driving layup with 49 seconds left that sent the game into overtime tied at 120. Edgecombe, the No. 3 pick of the draft who’s having a sensational rookie season, also gave the Sixers their last lead in overtime on a dunk just before Brown’s goaltended winner.
The Sixers returned from a 3-2 road trip — that included all three wins on the back end.
The Sixers host the Washington Wizards next on Wednesday (7 p.m., NBCSP).
Christian Dvorak is sticking around Philly for the foreseeable future.
He just needed some help from Trevor Zegras first.
“It’s great. I think it’s well-earned. I think it’s a great deal for both sides,” Zegras said his buddy’s new deal before dropping this: “And, funny backstory, he had nobody to be his witness for signing the contract. So he drove over to my house last night at like 11 o’clock, and I was his witness.”
The late-night visit came after the Flyers announced the almost-30-year-old centerman was signed to a five-year, $25.75 million contract extension with an average annual value of $5.15 million. A team source confirmed to The Inquirer that the first two years of the deal come with a full no-trade clause while the third and fourth years carry a modified no-trade clause.
“We’re very happy to have Christian be a part of the Philadelphia Flyers for the foreseeable future,” general manager Danny Brière said in the news release. “He has played a pivotal role in our team’s success this season and proven to be a reliable, two-way center that can be trusted in all situations.
“More importantly, he plays a big role in our locker room and has fit in seamlessly to our group and what we are building.”
On July 1, after Dvorak signed a one-year, $5.4 million deal that many thought was an overpay, Brière said that players like him, Noah Juulsen, and Dan Vladař, “were willing to bet on themselves, which is awesome.” Dvorak reiterated Tuesday that he was doing just that this past summer.
And it paid off, with the term being one of the main things he was looking for.
“I’ve just loved my time being here, first off,” Dvorak said. “It’s a great group of guys. We have a lot of fun, and it’s been a good fit for me, and, yeah, just like where the team’s headed. We’re playing some good hockey this year, and I think we’re just headed in a good direction here.
“And that’s really important to me.”
However, there were several questions raised with his initial signing — amplified even more now — including where he would fit and what his signing meant for the team’s long-term outlook.
DONE DEAL FOR DVO. 📃✍️
We have agreed to terms with forward Christian Dvorak on a five-year contract extension worth an average annual value of $5.15M. https://t.co/0jLng32Pec
Brière said over the summer that the short-term deals the team handed out, including the one to Vladař, who was signed for two years, would provide flexibility as the Flyers work their way through a rebuild. It would allow them to keep their options open for free agency in 2026 — which always seemed to be earmarked as a big moment for the team.
But the market for centers and top-tier wingers dried up with Jack Eichel, Kirill Kaprizov, and even Connor McDavid signing extensions. A player comparable to Dvorak was 31-year-old center Alexander Wennberg, who signed a three-year, $18 million deal with the San Jose Sharks on Sunday.
With the salary cap rising, the amount Dvorak is getting paid isn’t the issue. But the number of years he got is a little eyebrow-raising, considering where the Flyers are in their rebuild and the drafted players expected to start making pushes in the coming years.
Jett Luchanko and Jack Nesbitt, two of the Flyers’ first-rounders from the past two drafts, and 2024 second-rounder Jack Berglund, who impressed at development camp and World Juniors, are expected to be centers in the NHL in the next one to three years. The only centers in Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League who could push next season are Jacob Gaucher and Karsen Dorwart, with the former a fourth-line type and the latter a former college free agent signing who projects as a bottom-six forward.
Skating on a line with Zegras and Travis Konecny since Dec. 3, Dvorak is on pace for career numbers. He has 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 39 games, having missed one game in December with a lower-body injury.
The Illinois native is halfway to his career high in goals and is on pace to demolish his career high in points (38) set in 2019-20 when he skated for the Arizona Coyotes — and their then-coach, Rick Tocchet. Entering Tuesday, Dvorak is on pace for 18 goals and 51 points.
“I think it’s been pretty good,” Dvorak told The Inquirer in mid-December. “It’s been a good transition for the most part, coming in to a new team. They took me in right away. It’s a very tight-knit group, and it’s a good group to be a part of.
“And it helps knowing Tocc from prior, and I think it’s been a pretty smooth transition. It’s helped pretty much being with Zegras pretty much every game.”
Tocchet has relied heavily on Dvorak, as the former Coyote centers the top line, plays on the penalty kill, and was recently added to the power play. He has worked with Zegras in a hybrid center role where he takes the faceoffs and whoever is the first player back in the defensive zone fills the position of center.
Tocchet said in early December that Dvorak — who is sorely missed by his last team, the Montreal Canadiens, on and off the ice — was in more of a defensive role previously. Now he’s getting a chance to spread his wings offensively again.
“The one thing with Christian, he knows just because he signed this deal and he’s playing with Trevor, he’s still got to be Christian Dvorak,” Tocchet said on Tuesday, adding that it has helped the centerman’s season knowing his systems and their open line of communication.
“… That’s one thing that he’s really good at is knowing his identity — is being a really good two-way forward that can make plays, that can defend the puck and be a penalty killer. And he’s actually played a little bit of power play for us. So, a jack of all trades, and if he stays in that identity, he can be a good hockey player for you.”
Christian Dvorak and Rick Tocchet go back to their time together in Arizona.
According to MoneyPuck, among the Flyers lines that have played at least 65 minutes together, the trio ranks third in expected goals percentage (50.6%) and expected goals for per 60 minutes (2.9). They only recently have been clipped by the trio of Denver Barkey, Sean Couturier, and Owen Tippett.
“I’ve learned so much from him,” Zegras said in December. “[Looking] back to earlier in my career, like maybe when things weren’t going my way, I’d be screaming and slamming sticks on the bench, and saying all crazy stuff that doesn’t really help in a positive way.
“He’s as cool as a cucumber, and his famous line or expression is: it’s a game of runs. So that’s what I tell myself. It’s a game of runs. And you go back out there, you get ready to go for the next shift. So I just think that from the aspect of being himself, he’s a leader in that regard. And I’ve definitely learned a lot from him.”
With Dvorak signed, all eyes will turn to Zegras, who is a restricted free agent at season’s end and will command a hefty pay raise. Jamie Drysdale, Bobby Brink, Emil Andrae, Nikita Grebenkin, and Sam Ersson also are restricted free agents at season’s end. Nic Deslauriers, Carl Grundström, Rodrigo Ābols, and Noah Juulsen are the team’s only NHL unrestricted free agents next summer.
Sweeping changes to the United States’ childhood vaccine schedule announced Monday by federal officials will decrease the number of recommended childhood immunizations from 17 to 11.
Outraged pediatricians and infectious disease experts say the move will increase cases of preventable illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths. Among the vaccines affected is an immunization for rotavirus whose co-inventor, Paul Offit, directs the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Now, vaccination for the serious gastrointestinal illness is among those no longer universally recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The guidance change also affects immunizations for flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), meningococcal disease, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B. The CDC now recommends them for children at high risk of serious illness, or when parents of otherwise healthy children decide with their doctor to give their child vaccines for these diseases.
The CDC’s move is the latest in a chaotic upheaval of the nation’s vaccine policy overseen by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
“I think the goal of RFK Jr. is to make vaccines optional,” said Offit, a longtime critic of Kennedy, saying the anti-vaccine activist “is doing everything he can to make vaccines less available, less affordable, and more feared.”
Other experts said the decision was made without transparency and had little scientific backing. It comes at a time when more Americans are refusing vaccines; in Pennsylvania kindergarteners’ measles vaccination rates have dipped below the critical 95% threshold required to prevent the disease from spreading widely.
The Infectious Disease Society of America called the move “the latest reckless step in Secretary Kennedy’s assault on the national vaccine infrastructure that has saved millions of lives.”
Ronald G. Nahass, a New Jersey-based physician and IDSA’s president, said in a statement that Kennedy’s actions “put families and communities at risk and will make America sicker.”
The American Academy of Pediatrics, a leading professional medical society, said it would continue to recommend that all children be vaccinated against rotavirus, hepatitis, and other diseases removed from the CDC’s routine immunization list.
Under the new guidelines, the CDC will continue to recommend that all children get vaccinated for diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough or pertussis, haemophilus influenzae type b, pneumococcal conjugate, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, human papillomavirus or HPV, and chickenpox.
The agency will also recommend that children at high risk for serious complications receive vaccines for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), hepatitis A, hepatitis B, dengue, and two meningococcal diseases.
Previously, an independent committee that advises the agency in November recommended delaying hepatitis B vaccines for newborns.
“This framework empowers parents and physicians to make individualized decisions based on risk, while maintaining strong protection against serious disease,” said Mehmet Oz, a physician and administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, in a statement.
Federal officials said that insurance will continue to cover vaccinations, the Associated Press reported.
President Donald Trump is joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in September.
Vaccine policy around the world
Offit spent 26 years developing a rotavirus vaccine after treating children with the illness during his medical residency in Pittsburgh — including one patient who died. Rotavirus causes vomiting and diarrhea that can lead to dehydration and is particularly dangerous for young children. There are two vaccines available, one of which Offit helped to develop.
“I try not to take this personally,” he said of the new federal guidance.
“But what we hadn’t eliminated was the virus,” he said.
HHS officials said that their review of worldwide vaccination policies found that the United States vaccinates for more diseases than other developed countries.
But, they said, many countries that recommend fewer vaccines still achieve “strong child health outcomes” and “maintain high vaccination rates through public trust and education rather than mandates.”
Denmark may have better health outcomes, but it also has a national healthcare system, a lower childhood poverty level, and free childcare, Offit noted in a recent blog post.
And, he said, Denmark — which does not recommend routine rotavirus or RSV vaccination — sees children hospitalized from those viruses at higher rates than the United States.
“Denmark is nothing to emulate. They should be emulating us,” Offit said.
Likewise, AAP president Andrew Racine said in a statement that America is a “unique country” with different health risks and public health infrastructure than Denmark.
“This is no way to make our country healthier,” Racine said.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said that the state will “continue to rely on evidence-based guidance” including vaccine recommendations from the AAP.
“RFK Jr. is once again trying to sow chaos and confusion among parents — but know this: these changes at the federal level do not affect Pennsylvanians’ access to vaccines in our Commonwealth,“ he said in a statement. ”Pennsylvanians should continue to consult with their doctors and make informed decisions based on the best scientific evidence.”
New Jersey’s Acting Health Commissioner Jeffrey A. Brown said in a statement that the state sets vaccine requirements for school and childcare, and that those have not changed despite shifts at the federal level. He added vaccines in the state remain covered by insurance and the state is committed to protecting residents’ health.
“Federal efforts to reduce the number of vaccines recommended for all children in the United States are not supported by the available data nor the consensus of public health and medical experts,” Brown said. “Instead, deterring participation in vaccination risks leaving children vulnerable to serious and preventable infections.”
Changing public attitudes
In a December survey, the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania found that more than a third of 1,006 Americans polled were more likely to trust the American Medical Association, a leading professional medical society, over the CDC if the two conflicted on vaccine policy.
At the time of the survey, the CDC had recently changed its website to suggest — against decades of evidence showing otherwise — that there could be a link between vaccines and autism.
Asking the public to make their own decisions on whether to vaccinate their children can make people vulnerable to misinformation, Annenberg director Kathleen Hall Jamieson said in an interview with The Inquirer last week.
“The public doesn’t have time to do research on its own, on average, and in the process, they can get lost in a mire of misinformation and confusion very easily,” she said. “It’s easy to think one is doing one’s research when one is way down the rabbit hole.”
In the poll, the preference to trust the AMA over the CDC held true across political parties and was particularly pronounced among older Americans. The only age group more likely to accept the CDC over the AMA in the event of conflicting vaccine advice was 18- to 29-year-olds.
“The fact that, as the CDC began to change statements, the public shifted its trust to other organizations on consequential issues — that’s a statement that says the public intelligence is real,” Jamieson said.
The AAP’s Racine reiterated Monday that the society will continue to publish its own vaccine recommendations and help physicians to advise parents.
“Your child’s pediatrician has the medical training, special knowledge, and scientific evidence about how to support children’s health, safety, and well-being. Working together, you can make informed decisions about what’s best for your child,” Racine said.
Offit cautioned parents against avoiding vaccinations, as high rates do not just protect healthy children — they’re also vital for children with immune disorders who cannot be vaccinated.
And, he said, parents shouldn’t discount the risks of hospitalization or death from vaccine-preventable diseases.
“There’s this sort of myth of invulnerability — you never think it’s going to happen to you, until it happens to you,” he said.
Need proof? Look no further than Flyers prospect Aleksei Kolosov.
A year after a season marred by underwhelming play and off-ice drama, the Lehigh Phantoms goaltender has bounced back beyond belief, culminating in him winning the American Hockey League’s Player of the Week award this week. Kolosov went 2-0-0 with a 0.50 goals against average and a .984 save percentage for the Phantoms. He stopped 60 of the 61 shots he faced over the two games, including posting a 30-save shutout of Hershey on New Year’s Eve.
“He is a different player, different personality. He’s really trying to fit in,” Flyers assistant general manager and scouting head Brent Flahr told The Inquirer last month of Kolosov. “He’s very athletic, very competitive, and he’s giving our team a chance to win down there almost every night. He’s a talented kid, so he’s got a chance to be an NHL goalie now. He just skipped a step last year. Now he’s building it back up again here, and we’ll see where it goes.”
Kolosov’s award is the biggest highlight in an impressive season for the 24-year-old netminder. He is now 9-8-1 with a .910 save percentage in 18 AHL games. The Belarusian also looked more comfortable in the NHL than he was last season, stopping 26 of 28 shots (.929 save percentage) over two games in November while Sam Ersson was injured.
This all comes after an offseason where many speculated that Kolosov and the Flyers would part ways. Kolosov famously tried to force a loan move back to his native Belarus before last season and later reported to training camp late. There were reports that he felt isolated and was frustrated with the Flyers’ goaltending hierarchy.
“I think on [Kolosov’s] end, it’s more about he wants to be guaranteed a spot in the NHL. If not, he prefers to stay over there, and that’s not the way we see it,” Flyers general manager Brière said in September of 2024.
“We agreed last year to loan him back [to the KHL] for one year because he wanted to stay home. But at some point, you signed a contract, and we want him here. We want him to start integrating himself with the game the way it’s played here in North America, the smaller ice, and learning the language and all of that. And I guess he doesn’t see it that way at the moment.”
Things didn’t improve during the season as the Flyers inexplicably carried three goalies for large stretches, in part seemingly to accommodate Kolosov, who didn’t want to be in the AHL. The on-ice results weren’t good either, as Kolosov posted a 3.11 goals against average and .884 save percentage in 12 minor league games, and 3.59 and .867 splits in 17 games with the Flyers. During a stretch last January, Kolosov remained up with the Flyers despite not playing in a game for 20 days.
When asked for an update last March, Brière told The Inquirer that the situation was “not ideal, but I’ll leave it at that.”
Aleksei Kolosov seems to be a different person and player than he was last season as a rookie.
But despite expectations that the Flyers would trade the disgruntled goalie or terminate his contract and free him to return to Europe, Kolosov remained a Flyer throughout the summer and was present on the first day of training camp. He’s won back even more good faith since then.
Might it mean a recall to the NHL is imminent?
When asked on Monday if Kolosov could unseat the struggling Ersson (.868) for the backup role, Flyers coach Rick Tocchet said this:
“I think organizationally, the internal competition is huge. There’s guys in the minors, they’re pushing, right? They’re trying to get up. It’s a domino effect, right? So yeah, he’s just challenging the goaltending situation, he’s come into camp really focused, and just from the reports down there, he’s stringing a bunch of good games together, not one good game, one bad, like he’s stacking good games together, and that’s a sign of maturity, and that internal competition helps the organization.”
Kolosov’s turnaround is just one of several promising developments when it comes to the Flyers’ goaltending situation. Free-agent signing Dan Vladař has looked every bit of a No. 1 goaltender through 24 starts with a .910 save percentage, while 2023 draft picks Carson Bjarnason, who has a .912 save percentage as Kolosov’s partner in Lehigh Valley, and Egor Zavragin (.919 SV% in Kontinental Hockey League) continue to come along nicely.
Could the Flyers’ goalie curse finally be over? Well, it might be a little early to go that far just yet.
The city of Camden last year reached its lowest homicide total since 1985, police said.
In 2025, Camden recorded 12 homicides, the same number as in 1985. Homicides dropped down from 17 in 2024, and the declining year-end total comes after Camden experienced its first homicide-free summer in 50 years.
Camden saw an overall 6% drop in violent crime in 2025 compared to the prior year, including a 32% decrease in sexual assaults and 12% decrease in robberies, according to police.
“The consistent engagement with residents and community policing efforts have helped to build trust within our community,” said Camden Mayor Victor Carstarphen in a statement. “There is still plenty of work yet to be done, but through this collaborative effort we are building a safer and healthier Camden.”
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Leaders have attributed the shift largely to the disbandment of the city of Camden’s police department in 2013. Since then, the replacement Camden County Police Department and the city have embraced more community policing strategies, paired social workers with officers, and supported programming that provides better opportunities and care for at-risk youth.
Homicides have dropped by 82% since 2012, the last full year of the former police structure. But leaders have also credited the city’s investments in third spaces and infrastructure in recent years, like $100 million in parks over the past five years and repaving streets.
Thirteen years ago,“a homicide-free summer would have been a pipe dream for us,” Louis Cappelli Jr., director of the Camden County Board of Commissioners, said in a statement.
Center for Family Services lead counselor Lyzza Tyson (left) works with Camden County Metro Police Capt. Vivian Coley (center) and Lt. Luis Gonzalez (right) talking with an unhoused person living in the park at Waterfront South Raingardens in July. Some of the department’s new social workers are stationed inside the downtown police headquarters for walk-ins while others are deployed in the field alongside officers doing door knocks, engaging transients at encampments, and making referrals for social services.
Crime researchers have been unable to identify any singular cause behind the nation’s drop in violence, but they theorize that cities, like in Camden, have broadly shifted toward greater investments in violence prevention programs and infrastructure, as opposed to traditional policing.
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For Derrick Gallashaw, life in Camden today feels much different than it did when he was growing up there in the 1980s and ’90s. It was more dangerous back then, and the community’s relationship with police was more strained.
“It feels like the city is safe now,” he said.
Gallashaw is the regional director of Mighty Writers, a nonprofit offering afterschool writing programs for youth and food distribution. The Camden County police credited its partnership with Mighty Writers and other groups for helping to reduce violence.
Gallashaw is a believer in the strategy, too. He said the community policing initiative, paired with support for programs like his, have made a major impact on reducing violence. They are able to reach more people in need and address the conditions that often lead to crime.
“You give them options and you’re providing a need. If someone is hungry, you’re not giving them a reason to have to go out and steal something to eat. We’re finding a resource for you right now,” he said.
As Camden resets its violence statistics at the new year, Gallashaw said sustaining the city’s success would require leaders to continue listening to community members about their needs and not impose solutions from the top down.
It’s not just the city and police who are responsible for keeping the numbers low — he wants groups and community members to continue filling people’s needs as well.
“We all have to get together because it expands that reach,” he said.
One team had a meaningful game with a lot on the line and everything in its control. The other had a meaningful game with a lot on the line and only some things in its control.
The Eagles, the latter team, went the conservative route and rested most of their regulars. The San Francisco 49ers, meanwhile, played a big game in prime time Saturday and lost at least one starter for the playoffs in the process.
Of course, had the Eagles been in a situation in which a win guaranteed them the No. 2 seed in the NFC, Nick Sirianni likely would have made a different decision for Week 18 vs. Washington.
As it happens, the decision may have cost the Eagles a chance at a second home playoff game, but what it did guarantee was them entering wild-card weekend with the healthiest roster they could have. It was an extra week for right tackle Lane Johnson and linebacker Nakobe Dean to continue working toward their returns from foot and hamstring injuries, respectively. It was a day off for defensive tackle Jalen Carter to give his ailing shoulders a break. Edge rusher Jaelan Phillips got to rest his ankle injury. Tight end Dallas Goedert got to stay off his knee.
Lane Johnson (left) and Jaelan Phillips rested during the Eagles’ loss to Washington.
The 49ers, meanwhile, lost linebacker Tatum Bethune to what coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters was a season-ending groin injury during their Saturday night loss to Seattle. San Francisco remains without star linebacker Fred Warner (ankle), who has been out since Week 6 and is unlikely to be ready until at least the NFC championship game. Bethune started in Warner’s stead. Two other linebackers, Dee Winters (ankle) and Luke Gifford (quadriceps), will be evaluated this week for their injuries, Shanahan told reporters on Monday. Winters has played 92% of the 49ers’ defensive snaps this season.
The Eagles could be facing a hodgepodge of linebackers on Sunday (4:30 p.m., Fox29).
San Francisco also was without star left tackle Trent Williams for its game Saturday. Williams is dealing with a hamstring injury, and the 49ers struggled offensively without him, although the Seahawks have one of the best defenses in the NFL. San Francisco was held to 173 yards and managed just nine first downs vs. the Seahawks, while 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy was sacked three times. Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall practiced in a limited fashion last week but was ruled out for the game with knee and ankle injuries.
Johnson, the Eagles’ star tackle, seems to be trending toward returning for the postseason. Dean’s status remains unclear, but his Week 16 injury was not expected to be long-term. “Good news is, I don’t think it’s too serious and I don’t think we’re done seeing him for this season,” Vic Fangio said on Dec. 23. The Eagles could end up starting their postseason run with all of their active-roster regulars ready for action. (Rookie safety Drew Mukuba is on injured reserve.)
“I think it’s always a fine line of there’s two things that need to happen,” Sirianni said Monday. “[You’ve] got to have your players available, and you do different things to make sure that happens throughout the year, but it is so important that you continue to get better as the season goes on.
“Our guys know how to practice. They know how to practice efficiently. So we’ve had a tendency of getting better while also having guys healthy.”
Resting the regulars meant Tank Bigsby got the start at running back with Saquon Barkley on the sideline.
Bigsby has flashed in his limited role as a backup, and he showed Sunday why some are clamoring for more of him.
Bigsby rushed 16 times for 75 yards and a touchdown. He also turned a check-down completion into a 31-yard gain, making Washington’s Jordan Magee miss with a nifty cut in the process. Bigsby, however, played just two snaps in the fourth quarter and did not have a touch after the third quarter during the 24-17 loss.
Eagles running back Tank Bigsby rushed for 75 yards on 16 carries on Sunday.
“He runs hard,” Sirianni said. “He’s got extremely good ability to make you miss while also being able to put his shoulder down and finish runs through contact.
“The way he walks through, the way he practices, it really does show up in the game with how hard he runs and how hard he plays.”
Perhaps the Eagles will feature more of him, especially if they find success on the ground vs. a weakened San Francisco front seven.
A new baby African penguin at the Adventure Aquarium in Camden was unveiled Monday and a contest was announced to name him.
The unnamed chick was hatched Nov. 21 and was the third African penguin to be hatched at the Adventure Aquarium in 2025. The announcements of new chicks are held off until biologists determine the new bird is healthy and expected to survive.
“Although he’s a little bit younger than the other two, he does make up for it in size. He is quite a big baby penguin chick,” Maddie Olszewski-Pohle, a biologist, says in the aquarium’s introduction video posted on social media.
Starting Monday, aquarium visitors can vote on one of four names offered for the new penguin: “Scrappy,” “Zero,” “Flounder,” or “Toothless.”
The unnamed chick is being parented by Mushu and Hubert, who also parented a 2024 chick, Shubert. Mushu was named for a dragon sidekick from the Disney movie “Mulan,” so the aquarium’s birds and mammals team chose possible names using a dragons and sidekicks theme.
The naming contest will close Jan. 19, and the winner will be announced Jan. 20, Penguin Awareness Day, the aquarium staff said.
African penguins, which originate from the waters around southern Africa, are classified critically endangered, so the hatches are important to the survival of the species.
“As an ambassador for his species, this chick is helping raise awareness and funds to protect African penguins in South Africa,” Olszewski-Pohle said in a statement.
The three baby penguins will remain behind the scenes until they develop waterproof feathers and the weather warms up, aquarium staff said.
The company that owns P.J. Whelihan’s may be moving into a former Iron Hill Brewery in Bucks County.
PJW Opco LLC, which is registered at the headquarters of PJW Restaurant Group, was approved to take over a lease for the shuttered Iron Hill in Newtown, effective Dec. 31, according to documents filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey.
PJW marketing director Kristen Foord declined to comment.
The nearly 8,000-square-foot brewpub in the Village at Newtown shopping center has sat empty since September, when Iron Hill abruptly closed all its locations and filed for liquidation bankruptcy. The Newtown Iron Hill had been among the chain’s newest locations, having opened in 2020.
A view from the outside looking in on the closed Iron Hill Brewery in West Chester in October.
Brixmor Property Group, which owns the Village at Newtown, is “excited about what’s in the works” for the former Iron Hill space, spokesperson Maria Pace said in a statement, but she declined to share details.
The court documents did not indicate PJW’s plans for the Newtown site.
PJW’s most well-known franchise is P.J. Whelihan’s, the regional bar-restaurant chain that started in the Poconos in 1983. There are now 25 P.J. Whelihan’s locations from Harrisburg to Washington Township, with the vast majority in the Philadelphia area.
Haddon Township-based PJW also owns the Pour House, which has locations in Exton, North Wales, and Westmont, Haddon Township; the ChopHouse in Gibbsboro; the ChopHouse Grille in Exton; Central Taco & Tequila in Westmont; and Treno, also in Westmont.
The P.J. Whelihan’s on Route 70 in Cherry Hill.
As 2026 gets underway, Iron Hill’s bankruptcy case continues to make its way through the courts. In recent weeks, Iron Hill’s leases in Exton, Maple Shade, and North Wales were formally rejected, according to court documents. That means these empty breweries are getting closer to finding new tenants.
“Any out-of-town brewery with plans to leverage existing brewery infrastructure and scale its operations in the region would be a good fit, as it would save significant tenant improvement costs,” Kagithapu said in a statement. “I also believe a grocery store would serve the community very well.”
The Iron Hill Brewery TapHouse in Exton is pictured in 2020. After Iron Hill’s bankruptcy, the Exton landlord is seeking a new tenant for the massive space.
On Christmas Eve, Barry, a Massachusetts-based real estate investor, inked a deal to buy the liquor license and all interior assets of the location at the borough’s central corner of High and Gay Streets.
“It will not be reopening as Iron Hill Brewery,” Barry said in a recent interview. “My goal would be to find something similar,” though not necessarily a brewery.
Barry purchased the assets from Jeff Crivello, the former CEO of Famous Dave’s BBQ, who in November was approved by a bankruptcy judge to revive 10 Iron Hills under the same name or as a new concept. Barry and Crivello declined to disclose the financial details of the West Chester deal.
Pedestrians walk by the closed Iron Hill Brewery in West Chester in October.
The Newtown location was originally among the locations of which Crivello was approved to buy the assets, pending negotiations with landlords. Court documents indicate the asset sale was put on hold amid a landlord objection.
Founded in Newark, Del., Iron Hill Brewery operated for nearly 30 years, earning a reputation as a local craft-brewing pioneer and a family-friendly mainstay in the Philadelphia suburbs. In recent years, the chain had expanded into South Carolina and Georgia and had announced plans to open a Temple University location that never materialized.
When brewery executives filed for bankruptcy, they reported that they owed $20 million to creditors and had about $125,000 in the bank.
Tyrese Maxey was named the NBA’s Eastern Conference player of the week on Monday.
The 76ers point guard averaged 34.7 points on 61.2% shooting along with 8.7 assists, 6.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 1.3 blocks in three games last week — all road victories — against the Memphis Grizzlies, Dallas Mavericks, and New York Knicks.
“He’s having an amazing year, and he just kind of keeps coming up with some really big moments or really big games,” coach Nick Nurse said. “And the biggest thing for me is, as I continue to watch here, he’s getting better and better defensively. And that’s really great. That’s really great to see. It really is.”
Maxey started the week Tuesday with 34 points and a game-high 12 assists in a 139-136 overtime victory over the Grizzlies at FedExForum. The Garland, Texas, native followed that with game highs of 34 points and 10 assists in a 123-108 triumph over the Mavs at American Airlines Center on New Year’s Day. That marked the first time in his career he had recorded at least 30 points and 10 assists in consecutive games.
The sixth-year veteran concluded the week with 36 points, eight rebounds, four assists, one steal, and two blocks Saturday in a 130-119 victory over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
He made 14 of 26 three-pointers throughout the week, making at least four in each contest.
This is the second time in Maxey’s career that he has been named player of the week. The first time was on Oct. 30 after the first week of the season.
Starting with Monday’s contest against the Denver Nuggets, the Sixers will play 11 of 14 games at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
“That’s awesome,” Adem Bona said Monday after shootaround. “Ending the road trip with three [wins] in a row, that’s good for the team, good for the spirit. And to come back with a three-game winning streak is good for the fans.
“We’re really excited to be back home, also be back in our comfort space to put the motor a little bit more.”
On paper, the Sixers (19-14) have a great chance to match their season-best, four-game winning streak.
The Nuggets (23-12) have lost two straight and four of their last five games heading into Monday night’s matchup.
Three-time MVP and seven-time All-NBA selection Nikola Jokić is expected to miss four to six weeks after hyperextending his left knee against the Miami Heat on Dec. 29. The Nuggets center is averaging a triple-double: 29.6 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 11.0 assists.
Standout guard Jamal Murray (sprained left ankle), power forward Aaron Gordon (strained right hamstring), and backup center Jonas Valanciunas (right calf strain) are among Denver’s seven other sidelined players. The others are: Tamar Bates (left foot surgery), Christian Braun (sprained left ankle), Tim Hardaway Jr. (illness management), and Cameron Johnson (right knee bone bruise).
After facing the banged-up Nuggets, the Sixers will entertain the Washington Wizards on Wednesday before a three-game road trip against the Orlando Magic (Friday) and Toronto Raptors (Sunday and Jan. 12). Then they’ll play six games at home. After a road game against the Charlotte Hornets, they’ll close out the month with a three-game homestand.
On Saturday, Joel Embiid had 26 points on 9-for-15 shooting along with 10 rebounds and five assists against the Knicks in his first game at Madison Square Garden since Game 5 of the 2024 first-round playoff series.
The center recorded his first dunk of the season late in the game, which garnered a lot of attention. And Bona was still raving over it on Monday.
“That was hyped,” he said. “I know you saw the whole bench. We were all hyped. It was just a wide-open dunk, but we took it as it was a dunk. First dunk of the season. We were hyped.”
Joel Embiid is averaging 28.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.0 assists over his last seven games.
But the Sixers have more than a dunk to be excited about when it comes to Embiid. The 2023 MVP has found his offensive rhythm, averaging 28.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 4.0 assists over his last seven games.
Embiid has missed 17 games this season because of right and left knee injuries and a sprained ankle. However, he’s set to play in his fourth consecutive game on Monday, which will provide another opportunity to add to his recent stellar play.
“It’s great for the team,” Bona said of Embiid finding success. “It’s great for the environment, you know. Getting back to the Joel we know, it’s really awesome. His health is getting better, and his morale is high. We’re playing good together. It’s just good all around.”
Fast food mega-chain McDonald’s is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit focused on the authenticity of its McRib sandwich and what it’s made of.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Dec. 23, claims that McDonald’s deceptively markets the McRib to specifically contain meat from pork ribs through its name, branding, and appearance.
“The name ‘McRib’ is a deliberate sleight of hand,” the plaintiffs — four consumers from California, New York, Illinois, and the District of Columbia — said in the filing.
For those uninitiated, the McRib is sort of a big deal. It’s a fan favorite with “limited edition” status within McDonald’s. Its availability varies based on timing and location. It debuted on McDonald’s menus back in 1981, and when the chain announced its discontinuation in 2005, there was a lengthy “farewell tour.”
In the years since, the sandwich continues to make celebrated annual returns, heightened with the help of social media. There are dedicated unofficial McRib fan accounts and trackers.
“McDonald’s McRib is a sandwich of legend,” a 2009 Maxim article titled “The Cult of the McRib” said. “The heavenly blend of pork patty, barbecue sauce, and bun is, to devotees, so addictive that songs have been written about it, Internet shrines erected to it, and TV shows dedicated to it. … It is rarely seen, yet frequently sought and cultishly worshiped. It is the Holy Grail on a bun.”
And now, that famed sandwich’s integrity is being scrutinized.
Here’s what we know so far.
What exactly is the McRib?
McDonald’s describes the McRib as seasoned boneless pork dipped in BBQ sauce and topped with onions and pickles on a toasted bun. The sandwich is 520 calories and 24 grams of protein according to the fast food chain’s website.
Is the McRib available at McDonald’s now?
The McRib returned to some McDonald’s menus as part of its annual “farewell tour” in November 2025 and seems to still be available. But the sandwich is limited to certain McDonald’s locations, including in Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, Seattle, and St. Louis.
According to the fan-led McRib Tracker, there’s only a handful of states nationwide serving up McRibs right now. It ranges in price from about $4 to $8, depending on the region.
What does the McRib proposed lawsuit say?
The proposed class action suit says the McRib’s name, pricing, and appearance — a rib-shaped patty on a bun — misleads consumers into believing they’re purchasing a premium pork rib product.
The complaint adds that the rib-shaped patty is made of “restructured” pork using lower-quality cuts of pork, including shoulder, heart, stomach, and tripe instead of rib meat. McDonald’s has denied those claims.
The plaintiffs say they believed the McRib to be made of rib meat before purchasing. They add that marketing the McRib as a “limited-time” item is a strategy to create a sense of urgency, discouraging consumers from investigating its ingredients closely.
All four plaintiffs say they wouldn’t have purchased the McRib, or paid as much as they did, if they knew the sandwich had no actual pork rib meat.
The proposed lawsuit seeks class-action status on behalf of U.S. consumers who bought the McRib in recent years and is seeking damages, restitution, and a remedy to prevent future “deceptive marketing.”
What are McDonald’s McRibs made of?
McDonald’s McRib features what the company calls a “McRib Pork Patty,” which is shaped like a rack of ribs.
According to its website, the boneless patty is made of pork, water, salt, dextrose, and rosemary extract.
Using the phrase boneless pork does a lot of quiet, legal work in the background, noted Quartz.
McRib supporters say the sandwich has always been marketed as a boneless, snackable take on ribs. And it’s not a secret. To this day, there are no rib bones involved, and McDonald’s doesn’t pretend there are.
“Contrary to what its name implies, there is very little actual rib meat in a McRib,” the 2009 Maxim article about the cultish sandwich said. “Primarily, it’s shoulder meat,” Rob Cannell, then-director of McDonald’s U.S. supply chain, told the outlet.
He added, “The pork meat is chopped up, then seasoned, then formed into that shape that looks like a rib back. Then we flash-freeze it. The whole process from fresh pork to frozen McRib takes about 45 minutes.”
Has McDonald’s responded?
In a statement sent to multiple outlets, McDonald’s said that the lawsuit “distorts the facts and many of the claims are inaccurate.”
The fast food chain says the McRib is made with 100% pork sourced from farmers and suppliers nationwide.
“We’ve always been transparent about our ingredients so guests can make the right choice for them,” the company said.
The statement did not go into detail regarding the plaintiffs’ claims that the McRib’s marketing as “limited edition” plays into its price point and distinction from other permanent menu items.
Has something like this happened before?
Over the years, there have been several instances of lawsuits and disputes surrounding how popular foods are marketed or made.
For instance, in 2023, a judge dismissed a lawsuit that claimed that Subway’s tuna sandwiches didn’t use real tuna or contained less tuna than advertised. Subway denied those claims. The plaintiff and Subway came to an undisclosed agreement.
And similar but different: In 2014, the pomegranate juice company Pom sued Coca-Cola over its Minute Maid pomegranate blueberry juice. Pom claimed the Minute Maid juice was mostly apple and grape juice despite its branding. A jury eventually ruled for Coca-Cola.
There was also a major case in 2014 where food production company Unilever sued vegan mayo company Hampton Creek for calling its spread “Just Mayo” despite it being plant-based and lacking eggs. The case led to new regulations throughout the vegan food scene regarding how foods can be branded and if terms like milk or mayo can be used without key animal byproducts.
What happens next?
In short, a court will need to determine if the lawsuit qualifies as a class action that represents U.S. consumers who purchased the McRib.
From there, McDonald’s could file a motion to dismiss the suit, or the parties could potentially settle along the way. If the case proceeds, a judge may have to decide the scope of a “reasonable consumer” and their expectations when it comes to rib-shaped pork sandwiches.
