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Defense wins championships, the great Bear Bryant used to say. If that’s true, the Eagles took a step closer to a Super Bowl repeat with a 10-7 victory against the Packers last night in Green Bay, Wis. To be fair, the Packers defense was almost as fierce, but the Birds held their hosts without a point until late in the fourth quarter. Howie Roseman’s new addition made an immediate impact for that defense, too. Jaelan Phillips forced a critical Josh Jacobs fumble on fourth-and-1 late in the game as the Packers tried to come back. The Eagles are now 5-0 coming out of the bye week under Nick Sirianni, but Vic Fangio’s defense gets a big assist in this one. Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense looked sluggish for most of the game, but the quarterback and his unit came through in the clutch. On back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter, Saquon Barkley took a pass 41 yards and DeVonta Smith hauled in a 36-yard touchdown toss from Hurts. In his grades for the game, Jeff McLane saw the linebacking corps coming up especially big, with Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun leading the way. The coverage of the game on Monday Night Football focused on the Tush Push, of course, especially when the Eagles appeared to be offsides on the play. Jason Kelce took center stage on ESPN’s pregame coverage, partying with Packers fans, donning hockey skates, and even shedding a tear. With this victory, the 7-2 Eagles will begin preparing on short rest for a visit from the equally tough Detroit Lions on Sunday night. More coverage from the Eagles’ win can be found here. — Jim Swan, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com. If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here. ❓How does this defense stack up against the two Eagles defenses that won Super Bowl titles? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter. The 76ers knew this season would be unpredictable. With Joel Embiid and Paul George coming off knee surgeries in the offseason, the frontcourt would be in flux. Well, at least as far as Embiid is concerned, the Sixers have gotten more than they bargained for. He was prepared for the start of the regular season and has been impressive in limited minutes. But there are still reminders that he’s not yet fully healthy, like his lateral movement on defense and the inability to perform on back-to-back nights. So the Sixers have been leaning on Andre Drummond and Adem Bona on some nights and they have taken the job seriously. As Drummond said, the aim is to “take care of the team” when Embiid sits. Flourtown’s own Mike Richter is not in the Hockey Hall of Fame and it’s fair to wonder: Why not? Richter will live in New York Rangers lore forever as the goalie who delivered a Stanley Cup in 1994, and he also had a decorated career in college and with the U.S. team. His body of work says he should be in the Hall of Fame, writes Jackie Spiegel, who makes Richter’s case. As Dave Dombrowski leads the Phillies’ delegation into The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas to meet today through Thursday with the rest of the industry — executives from other clubs, as well as agents and MLB officials — let this serve as a reminder that the baseball offseason unfolds much like the season itself: methodically and over a period of months, not days or even weeks. But the next few days will likely provide greater clarity to some of the Phillies’ biggest questions. Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue died Sunday at age 84. Marcus Hayes reflects on Tagliabue’s impact on the game: By the time Tagliabue retired in 2006, he had established industry dominance for NFL owners over their workforce, ensuring labor peace; he had set parameters for ever-more-lucrative media rights deals; and he had welcomed new ownership in Dallas, New England, and Philadelphia, pumping fresh blood into what has become the most valuable sports league on Earth. By the turn of the century, despite the best efforts of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa and Michael Jordan, the NFL was king. Tagliabue was the kingmaker. Sports snapshot 🧠 Trivia time Who was the last Sixer to win the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Award? First with the correct answer here will be featured in the newsletter. A) Michael Carter-Williams B) Ben Simmons C) Allen Iverson D) Jerry Stackhouse What you’re saying about the Eagles We asked: How do you expect the Eagles to finish out the second half of the season? Among your responses: I expect them to behave and perform like the world champions they are! — Cathy J. I think it will be a very challenging 2nd half for the Eagles. Could easily lose this one to the 5-2 Packers on their cold home field. Upcoming games are against the 7-3 Chargers on the road, the 6-3 Bears and Lions thankfully at home, and the 6-3 always tough Bills in Buffalo. Two with the struggling Commanders and the road game in Dallas that they should win. All depends on how healthy and motivated and coached. Hope for the best but prepare for the worst. — Everett S. We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Olivia Reiner, Jeff McLane, Gabriela Carroll, Marcus Hayes, Devin Jackson, Gina Mizell, Jackie Spiegel, Jonathan Tannenwald, and Greg Finberg. By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.
