Eagles Survive and Advance

Happy Monday and Go Birds!

The Eagles did not play a perfect football game on Sunday. If you’re worried about Jalen Hurts and/or Jake Elliottt, we don’t blame you. But the defense balled out in a 22-10 victory over a pretty good Green Bay Packers squad.

Meanwhile, that new Center City Sixers arena that everyone has been fighting about forever? Forget all about it. There is suddenly a deal in place for a new arena in the South Philly sports complex.

Those same Sixers lost to the Orlando Magic while nobody was watching.

Let’s discuss it all.

In the email today:

• 💪 Eagles’ Defense Shines in 22-10 Victory Over Packers

• 😯 'We Should Have Never Trusted the Process': City Council Members Fume After ‘76 Place’ Plan Scrapped

• 🏀 Sixers Lose to Orlando Magic

  • 📆 This Day in Philly Sports History

  • 📊 Poll

  • 🔗 Links

  • 📺 Coming Up

The Eagles' 22-10 over the Packers on Sunday had something for everyone.

For the worriers? Jalen Hurts completed just 13 of 21 passes for 131 yards. A.J.Brown caught exactly one ball--for ten yards--and was spotted reading a book on the sidelines. And despite a Packers fumble on the opening kickoff and a +4 turnover margin, the Birds let the Packers hang around until late in the game.

For the optimists? The Birds' defense held an offense that averaged 27.1 points per game in the regular season to just ten points. The Eagles forced those four turnovers. The offense protected the ball, Hurts threw two touchdowns, and the team averaged 5 yards per carry en route to 169 rushing yards.

Dallas Goedert caught four balls for 47 yards, including this beast mode touchdown:

And for the gamblers? Some folks will be talking about this Saquon Barkley decision at the end of the game for a long time:

Here’s what Barkley had to say about the play after the game:

Check out Tim’s takeaways from the game here, watch the full set of highlights here, and find out which player Nick Sirianni wants his sons to emulate on the football field here.

We’ll have plenty more on the Birds all week long, of course. On Sunday, they’ll play the winner of Monday’s Vikings/Rams matchup, with a spot in the NFC Championship Game on the line.

Kickoff is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. and NBC will televise the game.

In a stunning turn of events, sources confirmed to On Pattison Sunday that the Sixers' plans for a new arena near Chinatown have changed and the team will be staying in South Philadelphia.

Although legislation recently passed to get the “76 Place” project rolling in Center City, the Sixers have reportedly struck a deal to remain in the South Philadelphia sports complex. Ernest Owens of Philly Mag was first to report the news.

As you would expect, several Philadelphia City Council members are furious.

Jamie Gauthier of District 3, who voted against 10 different bills pertaining to 76 Place in late December, told The Philadelphia Inquirer ($) that "it is clear that we should have never trusted the process in the first place. This development proves that the project was half baked."

"We should never be in a position where we are relying on the Sixers or any other corporation to plan our city. It's the city's responsibility," Gauthier continued. "Our Planning Commission and many other agencies and players that work directly for the city have the responsibility to engage the citizens in a vision for the future. They don't respect us, they don't respect Council, they don't respect the mayor, they don't respect the citizens.”

Kendra Brooks and Nicolas O’Rourke, two additional Council members who opposed the 76 Place plan, released the following joint statement:

Council members who supported the plan are perhaps the angriest about the turn of events. "I'm so livid right now I don't even know what to do,” one such member, Jimmy Harrity, told The Inquirer. “I feel as though I was used as a pawn."

All eyes now turn to Mayor Cherelle Parker’s Monday morning press conference.

THE Philly Sports Newsletter is down a staff member at the moment, with Phil on assignment. So meet Hurgly, a mischievous little scamp who loves downing a couple cold ones with the boys, cracking jokes, and, most of all, writing about sports!

Here’s Hurgly’s AI-generated recap of Sunday’s Sixers/Magic game.

Prompt: Write a recap of Sunday’s Sixers/Magic game in the tone of a mischievous little scamp who loves downing a couple cold ones with the boys and cracking jokes.

The final score was actually 104-99. We’re working out some kinks.

📆 This Day in Philly Sports History

On January 13, 2018 the Falcons almost killed the Eagles’ Super Bowl run early.

Almost.

📊 Poll

Results from Friday:

🔗 Links

• 🏈 The Commanders beat the Bucs on Sunday with a last-second field goal.

• 😯 The Broncos hung close to the Bills until this Josh Allen throw to Ty Johnson. The Bills ran away with the game from there.

• ☘ Ohio State is a huge favorite over Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

• ✈ A former UFC champ was kicked off a flight on Saturday after a seating dispute.

• 🇨🇦 ICYMI: Jeff Hoffman is now a Blue Jay.

📺 Coming Up

Games before our next send.

Monday, January 13

• Flyers vs. Panthers, 7:00 p.m. (NBC Sports Philadelphia, ESPN+)

Thanks for reading. See you tomorrow.

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