PHLY Philadelphia Eagles Podcast - PHLY Eagles Podcast | Opening Day! The Philadelphia Eagles’ memorable openers, + comparing Phillies & Eagles

Episode Date: March 29, 2024

With the Philadelphia Phillies opening their season across the street from the Linc, Zach Berman and Rich Hofmann reflect on the memorable season openers in recent Eagles history.Plus, which Eagles players are most similar to Bryce Harper and other Phillies star. And we have some WR3 news! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

opening day everybody it is a holiday in Philadelphia and we are here on P HLY for the Eagles show talking about opening day and other Eagles nuggets I'm Zach Berman here with Rich Hoffman Brenna back home as well and Rich you're there you have the Phillies hat on what's the buzz back home right now for a big Philly season after a disappointing Eagle season came to a close I think people are excited Zach you know

you're around here. I know you're in Florida right now, but you know what the deal is. And it's, it is cool on opening day. It is kind of like an Eagle Sunday where everybody is, you know, kind of wearing their, their Philly stuff. You just see it when you're getting a coffee. You know, everybody's dressed in red. So we're excited. A nice day outside, pretty windy. I think the, uh, the pitchers are going to have a better day today, but it's exciting. It's exciting. When you have a good baseball product, it makes the summer so much better. And yeah, I don't know if the Phillies are going to win the World Series. I think they're going to be a pretty good team though. And I think they have established that they can get us to let at least the Labor

Day, at least the Eagle season. They'll probably get us a little farther than that, honestly. But I'm excited. Sure. It makes the summer better. But I think what everyone in Philly wants to know is if it's going to make the fall better. And that that period of time when the Eagles, when the Eagles are rolling and the Phillies are in the postseason, Sixers and Flyers about to start up. It's always, It's always a fun time in Philly, but so is right now when, you know, even though it's after the season for the Eagles, you have the draft coming up. You just had free agency. Sixers and Flyers are kind of pushing toward the postseason and the Eagles. I'm sorry, and now the Philly season gets going.

So we are going to have a Phillies theme to the show, like we said yesterday, where we're going to talk about opening days in Eagles history. We're going to give some Phillies Eagles comps. And then we're going to talk about the stadium complex. bit because Eagles and Phillies are neighbors. This is happening across the street from where the Eagles play. So we will, we will get into that. But before we do that, there has been some news since you and I last spoke. Now, one is player transaction related. One is kind of schedule related, something that I can geek out on. But I think it is relevant for Eagles fans. And the other day, Bo and I were talking about potential changes to the offseason program. And I outlined then

why I thought this would be notable. And this just came out a few minutes. minutes ago, the Eagles off-season dates. The Eagles will have seven OTAs, but most notably, they will have mandatory minicamp. That's from June 4th to June 6th. So why is this relevant? Well, this is Nick Siriani's fourth year, and this is his first time having a mandatory mini-camp. They had one scheduled in 2021. That was kind of in the wake of COVID. The off-season program was modified as it was at that point. Nick Siriani met, you know, there was a period of time there where players weren't sure they were going to come into the facility. Nick Siriani met with the leaders.

That was his first time. They had a modified offseason program that did not include a mandatory minicamp. The past two years, the Eagles have elected to go with six OTAs, which is well below, like, what they're allotted to have or what they're allowed to have, and they did not have the mandatory minicamp. So here they are now going into a year where they don't have or where they have this revamped coaching staff, where they have more time since the season, since the season ended. compared to last year.

And this shows me that Nick Siriani is not just shuffling the deck chairs. It's not just changing kind of the names on the media guide, if you will, or in the program. He is taking a close look at how they're operating, and they are adding more practices. So I know this is not the type of thing where, you know, it kind of moves the needle for news. but if you're trying to figure out, are they doing things differently? That's what stands out to me, Rich. Yeah, Zach. So I wonder, is it the fact that they have a new coaching staff?

They're going to be implementing a lot of new schemes. I also was wondering, is it because the old guys aren't here anymore? You know, like they scored well on that NFLPA. Nick scored well in terms of just how he treats his players. And I'm sure that has more to do with, you know, interacting in the locker room. but the fact that they went pretty light on practices, the fact that they have stayed healthy over all these years. What do you think it is?

Do you think it's more of the coaches? Yeah, I think it's more the coaches. And that's a good point that you bring up about some of the veteran players. Although I would say I've kind of pointed to that as a reason why they should have more of these all-season programs or off-season practices rather because it gives them a chance to get the down the roster players more snaps, more meaningful work with the coaches. And it was, I kind of got pushed back when I spoke to people behind the scenes on this saying, like, you know, there's, it's, it's all about being healthy for week one. And there's things you can accomplish without kind of being on the field.

But I think that it's, it's beneficial, especially for, let's say, roster spots 40 to 90 to have more OTAs, to have a mandatory mini camp. But I think the impetus here more than anything else, if I'm being honest, is they're introducing a new offensive scheme. Vic Fing, you know, Vic Fangio is adjusting this defensive scheme. He wants to see his personnel. This is an important off-season program. Even last year when the Eagles had coaching changes, Brian Johnson knew all the offensive personnel on the offensive side. They were keeping that intact. Sean DeSai, he was a new coordinator, but it was mainly, you know, there were a,

a lot of returning guys on that staff. And the Eagles were really thinking kind of about keeping these guys fresh. I think now this more than anything else is about introducing these schemes and getting the sense of the players. And you might be able to watch a little bit more. You might have a little more content for people in the summer months, right? Yes. Well, that now you're speaking my language here because I love that, especially the fact that we're doing a daily show, right? So, you know, one of the questions that I had when I took this job was, well, what's May going to look like?

What's June going to look like, right? And now we have more practices to talk about, more eyes on them. So it's going to help the P.HLY Eagles show as much as anything else. So I appreciate that. Do you think this is just a start, though, when it comes to how they've looked at the offseason? because I remember after that Patriots game last year and kind of them starting sloppy and just not being, you know, completely on the same page. There was some talk of, you know, Siriani saying like, yeah, we might have to look at how we do training camp and preseason and how we handle those things as well. Great question. I think preseason is what they're going to look hard at. I don't think they're going to tackle to the ground in training camp.

I don't. It would surprise me if that changes. I think that in the preseason, uh, you might see these guys playing more, but there is a balancing act, if you will, because the Eagles also want to be very close to their vest in terms of what they show, right? So even though you never had, you know, you always keep a vanilla in August. They, they, they, they don't want to show you much

in terms of personnel. So I would, I do think they are going to make adjustments there after the way they started last season. But I think like at least for now, the big change, of course, is the office. off-season program. And then when the Eagles returned to the off-season program, there's going to be a competition for the number three wide receiver spot. And we spoke about Paris Campbell the other day. But news coming out yesterday that Alamini Zayas, your fellow St. Joe's prep alum.

I know. They're gone. Him and Swift. Yeah. More. They're not, they're not keeping OZ. Cquez left this week two to Pittsburgh. Alamity Zakeas going down to Washington where apparently Brian Johnson has some juice, right? Bringing in Marioita, bringing in OZ. your read on on on this and then i'll i'll give my oz thoughts but well knowing that he's not here knowing they are going to have changes at the third wide receiver spot what jumped out to you two quick thoughts because you mentioned part of it on twitter i just didn't understand last year why he didn't play more like i know there was probably some like didn't nick a couple of times point out that he was not running the clear out route correctly fast enough there

There seemed to be some sort of frustration, which obviously me just watching it on TV, I'm not like paying attention to that as much. But compared to Cuez, like that guy would make a contested catch every once in a while, Zach. And I do think like if they brought him back as the third receiver, I would not have said this is like time to panic. I think he could have handled that job. But, you know, maybe the Eagles felt differently.

And because OZ is now gone and because Cuez is also off to Pittsburgh, I do think like we need to start brushing up on what do you think second round receivers, third round receivers. It seems like on a team that, look, we can argue about the Eagles needs and like what positions they need to fill. They have tried to fill a lot of those areas and free agency. Time will tell if they're actually good solutions, some of those players like the Devin whites of the world.

But wide receiver three, I would say, is pretty high up there on the list. So I'm I guess I'm looking towards the draft. I think they're going to need another guy to fill that spot. Yeah. So a few things there. First off, I agree with you. I thought OZE should have played more last year. Now, you were right there.

There was some frustration early on a specific play. But then also, Siriani kept saying someone with kind of his toughness, who plays the way he plays has a role on Seriani's team. I think the Eagles were looking for more of a dynamic threat from that third receiver spot, which runs counter to them signing Holyo Jones, of course. If Beau's watching this in like Magic Kingdom right now or something, he's saying, ZB, what's going? You know, you always talk up Julio Jones, right?

So, yeah, I get that. They didn't get that from, from Julio, of course. He's got this fired up on Space Mountain right now, you're saying? Yeah, seriously. I don't anticipate both doing that. I, yeah, yeah. You might do that, yeah. I'm a bit more of a nerd than he is.

So the OZ thing, he had two touchdowns, I think, on like 10 catches, right? So, but, and I said going into the year, his ADOT, which kicking out here, average depth of target, right? Was higher than one would think. People always thought it was kind of like an underneath guy. But, yeah, I do think the Eagles want a more dynamic, they want more of a dynamic threat there. They do like Paris Campbell, but I've been on this train all along about them drafting a wide receiver in the second round. And, you know, Bo and I've had some healthy disagreement about it and we'll kind of see

how it comes leading up to the draft. I'll say this. This is a loaded receiver class, absolutely loaded. You're going to find a wide receiver in the second round like a Troy Franklin type from Oregon, for instance, who has, like, you know, late first round potential. There are guys like, like, I'd say, Ricky Purcell from Florida, you know, Ladd McConkey from Georgia, who will probably be. be gone by then who like if you're looking for a specific role could really help you there if you're

looking they have there are deep threats there going into the combine there was talk about someone like xavier worthy maybe being available in second round with the way he ran i don't think that happens but someone like xavier leget from south carolina could be there this is all a way of saying there's the eagles have two second round picks there's talented receivers there um it would be ambitious at best and it would be ambitious at best to expect Devante Smith and AJ Brown to continue playing 17 games. Those guys have been remarkably healthy for the Eagles, but you saw, I shouldn't say ambitious at best.

It would be ambitious. More specifically, though, you saw in Week 18 last year when Devante's not there, how it affects the offense. You saw in the playoffs, when AJ Brown's not there, how it affects the offense. So the third receiver, in addition to having that role, you're going to need someone who can step in if one of those guys goes down.

And then when you think long term, and we're not there yet, I get that. We're not there yet. We talked about this on yesterday's show. But when the Eagles paid Devante, then A.J. Brown, when he's up for a new deal, right, they're going to have some difficult things they're encountering.

So when you say, all right, the third year of the second round picks rookie deal, is he a starting receiver for you? The fourth year, is he a starting receiver for you? If he's a third receiver, he's a starting receiver. But even then, he might be a top two receiver for you. This is a way of saying I would think that the Eagles can and should maximize this draft class. Well, yeah, it fills a need for this current year, but it also gives you the Sam Hinky word, optionality moving forward, right?

If you can't pay both AJ and Devante moving forward, like if this player, you know, pops, it turns into a good, you know, starting level receiver, which is very possible if you take somebody in the second round, right, AJ Brown, second round pick, right? that that does happen yeah so i i do think they're probably going to need to take a receiver and i would like to see it by round two you know like i think that's going to be an important part um but yeah like oz you know he made that catch against the bills last year and i think my my main reaction to that zach was oh my god quez wouldn't have even come close to making that catch that was that was unbelievable i kind of wish it felt like some of the the film grinders and look you know the the eagles coaches

and Jalen Hertz, they know more about what is going on than everybody from the outside. But they were pointing out like, hey, sometimes OZ was open on some of these routes and like Jalen just was not really looking this way. So, you know, maybe finding a guy that Jalen says, okay, I'm good throwing the ball to him every once in a while would be nice. But like, look, you know, third wide receiver, if that's one of your biggest needs for this current season going into the draft, I think that is both, that's a good thing roster wise. And it's also something that you can accomplish.

Like you can find a guy who can come in and contribute at a decent level right away. And I should mention too. The wide receiver three is probably the fifth option in the passing game because you have A.J. Devonte, Dallas Goddard, and Sequin, who I expect to have a role in the passing game, too. One last thing on this. The St. Joe's Prep Alumni Association can't be particularly happy about how the- Right over there. Yeah, for me right up there, right? They can't be thrilled about how this,

how this offseason program has, or I'm sorry, how this offseason calendar has gone for the Eagles. Last year must have been so fun when those two guys were coming out from your high school. I was loving it. Yeah, I mean, Joe Buck was mentioning that they both went there and there were stories about it. And, yeah, they played on the same team together, OZ and Swift. So, yeah,

But like, look, let's be real. It might have been our fault. That wasn't a great year when they both came aboard. So, you know, changing things up. John Runyon is now on the Giants to John Runyon, I should say. So, yeah, I guess we're going to have to wait for, I guess Marvin Harrison. Jeremiah Trotter Jr. Marvin Harrison, Jr.

They're not getting Marvin Harrison, Jr. But Jeremiah Trotter Jr. would get some excitement in the city. We, yeah, the prep, their football team is like, I don't know, it's like, this is like a hot take. I kind of wish they would go back to when, when you and I were in high school, kind of around that time, when they were,

they were good, they were the best team in the area. This is like a joke. How good they are now. They're getting kids from all over the place. They're playing like IMG Academy and playing like good games against them. So if they continue to have a program that kind of works on this sort of nationally competitive level,

the Eagles are probably going to have a few more shots. I will say, though, like when those teams play on like the PI, AA against like public schools. I know those public schools are not happy that they have to play against the prep because those games are usually not very close. I hear you there, although I wish it happened like seven years ago because during my time at the Inquirer,

I was responsible for writing about all the local players. So when you're doing draft previews and you got the best wide receiver in the draft like Marvin Harrison Jr. You know, there was Will 4 at one point. J. One strong was a third round pick. but the amount of high level players that the preps put in out. Yeah, you're right. For a high school football fan, the competitive balance isn't there for an NFL fan.

Yeah, and just like to give a little filly flavor, I think it's pretty cool. I think it's pretty cool. Yeah. Oh, for sure. Yeah, I'm just, it's funny kind of at the high school level. But yeah, it's awesome. It's awesome that all these kids, most of them seem like really, you know, nice, cool kids kind of growing up. I love what I've seen from Jeremiah Trotter Jr.

In part because of the prep, in part because of kind of the interplay between him and his dad as well. But yeah, it is cool. It's basically one-stop shopping at this point, though, Zach. The good players, you just got to go to 17th to Gerard. You'll find them there. It makes the local pro that easier. So in a minute, we're going to get to the first Phillies game and some first Eagles games. But before we do that, let me tell you about the first time that I'm telling you about my friends at Truemark Financial Credit Union.

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Restrictions Apply, see Empiretoday.com slash pHLY for details. So as we said, opening day. And Philly's opening day, you know, it's significant for like the pomp and the circumstance. You know, every player goes out and they're introduced, right? But it's, it's one of 162. If the Eagles win, if the Phillies win today, the Phillies lose today, it doesn't shape, it doesn't shape the season. NFL opening days are a little different because you really kind of get a sense of how the season can go sometimes by that opening today. So I ask you, and we can go back and forth about memorable Eagles opening days, we'll say recent history, because I wasn't going back to like 1960 when I was pulling this one up.

No, I wasn't at Franklin Field for that one. So I think the point you just made, though, Zag, is something that looking back at the last few decades, of opening days. Like, look, I don't know if this is completely hindsight, but the opener really sometimes can tell you what is coming down the pike. Like, like last year, okay, we didn't know the defense was going to crater to the level that it did, but that was a close game against a bad team. Mack Jones got going, you know, kind of throwing over the middle in the second half of

that game. The execution down the stretch was sloppy. Like, you know, they didn't convert on the 4th. down. I remember it did kind of show that like, okay, this is not going to be as smooth of a ride as last year. Okay. And there are plenty of other examples and we'll get to that. So if you're asking me, though, the most memorable Eagles opener, for some reason, I just go back to 2013. And I still think like the chip era starting on Monday night football against Washington. Washington had just won the NFC East the year before. That's one of my favorite games. And really, Zach, it was the first two

drives that stood out to me. They get the ball. They go a million miles an hour in a way. I don't think we've ever seen an NFL team go. And they march right down the field. But then I believe it was DeAngelo Hall. It was like a weird lateral play. He runs it back. You know, it was kind of like Vic, the ball got deflected or something like that. I have never seen a flukier, less deserved touchdown and it should have really taken, you know, all of the momentum away from the Eagles after this great drive. They get the ball right back after a scoop and score and they just keep moving the ball up and down the field. Vic looks amazing. DeShan looks dynamic, not shady looks great. And, you know, like I just remember thinking, you know, is football changed now? Like are the Eagles,

is every team going to look like the Eagles right now? And the answer? And the answer, you know, is, is it's, is every team going to look like the Eagles right now? And the answer is, no, not exactly. Like, and I think the Eagles definitely changed over the chip era as well. But in terms of just how much fun that game was, it was, I mean, it was such a delight. I mean, obviously the Eagles winning the game was important as well, but it did go to show that like that first year, really the first year of the chip era, 2013, for a team that did not win a playoff game, that was so much fun watching that team. Yeah, I'm going to quote Jason Kelsey here because if Jason Kelsey was on, he might mention that. This was from his speech, which we all have seen by now.

I won't forget Chip Kelly's first game as Eagles head coach against the Washington Redskins. We ran close to 50 plays in the first half. We were so tired, but it didn't matter because they couldn't stop us. The NFL had never seen something like this before. I remember all of us thinking after the game, this is going to change the NFL. So did it change the NFL? Not necessarily, but what it did, like it was, it seemed like a revolution. You know, I've heard the expression, like the revolution of the NFL is being televised here.

It was Monday night football. They ran 53 plays, I think was the exact number in the first half. In the first half. And they were just playing at a pace that was totally different. And it was like, the players were exhausted, but it was, it was like special to watch, you know. And I have actually in my home, I have a blown up. like poster of the front page of the Inquirer sports section from the Tuesday after that game. I wrote the game story.

And I remember driving back from Landover then thinking like what like this, this is going to work. Right. The NFL hasn't seen something like this before. And things changed there after. And we'll kind of get to that in these openers. But I am with you there. when I think about the opening day, like that signal to the league

that something was different with the Eagles. Well, and it was on Monday Night Football, too. Everybody in the country was watching the Eagles play this just totally new brand of football. It was so exciting. And also, frankly, coming off that 2012 season when they were just dreadful, you know, by December, they were just kind of playing out the string.

Like it was so refreshing to watch. Let me ask you last thing on this. because I do remember, you know, a lot of the talking points after the game had to do with, you know, can the players do this over 16 games? Like can they make it to the playoffs playing this speed specifically the big guys, specifically the offensive linemen. Was there any sense that this was coming? I don't really remember the training camp quite as well. Did you, I know this probably hit you by surprise to a certain degree, but were there any, you know, from the preseason or training camp, was there any hint that, something like this was coming.

Yes. Now, to that degree, no, but everything they did was different. Now, you have to remember, too, that point Philadelphia had 14 years of Andy Reed, right? Andy, the personnel changed, but things were, things were kind of what they were with Andy Reed. They were run the same way, practices, everything was going to run the same way. So now they come out. I remember a big deal was music, right? The Eagles had music during practice.

And we're putting the playlist together. Everything was fast. You know, there were times like in Andy Reeve practices where the whole team was kind of standing around watching the, you know, just the 11 on 11th, right, or the 7 on 7s. This here, they had different things going at different fields. Like things were, it was drill to drill. Practice looked different. They weren't huddling.

I remember Chip Kelly called huddling a. committee meeting or something of that nature. So, yeah, so the way it looked, I mean, I didn't expect it to kind of look like that in the first game, but I knew it was going to be different. Yeah, I think I look more fondly on the chip era now that we have more space from it. Like, he gave us one great year. He gave us one average year. I mean, they were 10 and 6.

That's an unlucky to not make the playoffs that year, even if I don't think, you know, whether it was Sanchez or. I forget if Foles was even available at that point. A Foles got hurt. Sanchez came in, yeah. Yeah, so they probably weren't going to make too much noise in the playoffs. And then the third year was a complete disaster and it was all Chip's fault. So, you know, it evened out.

But that first year was great. And I think there were probably two openers that stood out to me the most, just of my lifetime being an Eagles fan. And that was one of them. I'm curious if you can come up with the other one, though. From your lifetime here. So I have my list in front of me. And I'm guessing yours is the second one on my list. which is the 2000 Eagles, the pickle juice game.

Okay, yeah. So real quick, the pickle juice game for our younger audience. This was Andy Reed's second year as head coach. They were down in Dallas. It was 109 degrees that day. On the field, it was 130 degrees. The Eagles opened the game with a surprise kickoff. I'm sorry, with a surprise onside's kick, which you won't see anymore.

So that was one part of this. But the other part of it was it was so hot that Rick Berkholder, the team trainer, had the players drinking pickle juice. and they made a big deal about it on the sideline and it's forever known now as the pickle juice game. Eagles dominated that game, 42 something was the score and they went on to make the playoffs that year. I actually watched a YouTube video,

the pickle juice game this morning, Zach, in prep for this pod. Don't say I don't prep for this pod, everybody. I would not there. So I obviously remember the onside kick was great, like just a very bold move. Do you remember, I think it was maybe two or three years later, they also tried a surprise onside kick in Dallas. And the Dallas guy ran the surprise onside kick back for a touchdown on the first play of the game.

I wish, well, look, I did some research. I didn't do all of the research, but I'm pretty sure that's true in 2003. But yeah, I just remember thinking like, man, what a bold play. And it just felt like the Eagles had arrived. You know, Andy had his first year where, you know, Donovan gets his feet wet. Donovan comes in and now it's like, okay, we're the best team in the NFC East. And I remember great Deuce Daly game, Deuce just running on the Dallas Cowboys. But in watching the video of the highlights of that game, there were two things that stood out to me.

Number one, whoever the sideline reporter was, it was Madden and Summerall were calling the game. And I apologize, I don't know who the gentleman was, who was the sideline reporter. he called the pickle juice before the fake onside kick before the Eagles kind of ran wild over Dallas. He's like, by the way, the Eagles are drinking this pickle juice right now. And they say it hydrates them. And at one point, he says, you know, frankly, like the science doesn't completely support this. But the Eagles say it works. So we're going to go with it.

And then the other thing that stood out to me, Donovan ran in a touchdown at the end of the game. And I just forgot, like, what an unbelievable athlete, Donovan. was early in his career wasn't as good of a passer certainly developed and probably became a better overall quarterback later in his career but he scores and Zach he dunks the football in his pads over the goalpost after he scores and it like it what I've seen other players do that and you know get close like he was way over the bar so it was just kind of wild to see because when I often think of Donovan I think of a little bit more of the heavier Donovan you know and a gingerly rolling out to his right with a big pocket and letting it loose kind of later in his career from,

you know, 2004 to 2009 kind of era. But yeah, I mean, what a crazy athlete. So that was so much fun. And obviously, like the two top games, two huge wins over division rivals, right? Like when you, when you win and you basically just kind of embarrass a division rival in their own building, that's going to make it sweeter. Yeah. I think people forget sometimes with Donovan that he was A college basketball player at Syracuse was a member of a Final Four team, right? So he and his numbers, his rushing numbers early in his career were awesome. Like he wasn't Mike Vic, but he was one of the best running quarterbacks in the NFL for a long period of time. Now.

I remember. Yeah, I remember. Yeah. He like broke some ankles a couple times too earlier in his career too. Against Washington. He had a famous run where he did. Yes. Yep. Okay, good. I was hoping you would say that. So do you want my next few openers or are there openers you want to get to? I will get to the next one, Zach, and I'm going to say two, just because they're basically the same game, in my opinion. And they are 18 years apart. And that is the 2004 opener and the 2022 opener. And the reason I say they are on my list, I like that.

The reason I think they are the same type of games, even if one of them was at home and the other one was on the road. it was just a holy crap we just got one of the best receivers in the game okay and this guy is making an insane impact right away and you know the first one obviously tio against the giants catches three touchdowns you know he's like he's flexing in the uh in the end zone that was obviously the tio honeymoon phase that first year where uh what was the bet did he have a bet that Andy would, uh, something with a tight.

Yeah. You'd have to wear tights or something like that. He would be allowed to wear tights in practice or, yeah, something of that nature. Yeah. So like, look,

that was such a fun game. And I, I just remember thinking like, you know, after having no offense to these guys, because I think Pinkston was still on the team, Todd Pinkston and like James Thrash, it just was a different level with this type of dynamic receiver.

Like I just remember those Eagles teams were great in the early 2000. But I felt like their offense. I would watch a lot of the games with my uncle, Zach, actually. My uncle Pat, who you know from the from the daily news, he would, I would watch a lot of the games with him. And he would, he would be like freaking out because they would throw balls the James thrash and have him try and shake a cornerback one on one. And he would get like two yards every time.

And those teams are great, but they obviously did not have that dynamic receiving threat. T.O. was that guy. And then 2022, and again, both of the years. is they make the Super Bowl. They get A.J. Brown and they play this kind of ridiculous up and down game against the Lions. But the Jalen is just throwing slant after slant. And then he throws a couple deep balls to AJ. And you're just looking and I said, man, Devante Smith, I'm so excited about him. But this guy right now is on a slightly different level. And it just was, it was really exciting. So those those games kind of reminded me a little bit of each other. Okay. Yeah. I, I, I see that

there and I can tell you specifically covering that that 2020 game in Detroit that you definitely felt that way right you were like man this offense like and Devonthe didn't have a single catch that game. And AJ was just special and he's he's been that ever since. And I always remind Eagles fans like when there's any type of critical talk about AJ Brown, do you remember what this looked like before he got here? Everything changes when you have a player like that. He has certainly done that. So I'll give you two now and then we'll compare our fit thereafter. But two that jumped in my mind because those are different than what I had was 2016, Carson's first game. And they beat the Browns. It's at home. And so this is interesting because

Carson wasn't supposed to be the starter week one, right? Teddy Bridgewater gets hurt a week, two weeks before the season. Week and a half before the season, the Eagles trade, Stan Bradford on cut down day. Carson Wentz is out hunting that morning and gets a call that he's now the starting quarterback. And even though the Eagles gave up all of this for Carson Wentz, Eagles fans really didn't see much of him. He got hurt in his first preseason game. I believe it was against Tampa. And so he did not play the rest of the preseason. And here he is. And so it's it's kind of this like come. It's the first time Eagles fans are really seeing Carson. And it's Doug Peterson's first game. And they're playing against the Browns who aren't particularly good. You know,

they were starting our G3 that game. And like Carson and Jordan Matthews were connecting on these touchdowns. They were throwing this slot fade. And it was like, man, do they have a quarterback here? Right. I mean, they gave up all of this to get Carson Wenz. Carson Wenz wasn't the type of quarterback who Eagles fans were watching on TV on Saturdays, right? I mean, it's, it's not as if you're taking like, you know, Jaden Daniels who won the Heisman trophy or something like that. you're taking a guy from North Dakota State. And he just looked special that day. And it led to, I mean, 2016, he was good, kind of slowed down a bit.

They clearly needed receiving help. 2017 was incredible. But that was a particularly memorable season opener. And then the other one that I'll throw in here, too, before I get to my last one, was 1999. Andy Reid's first game. And what jumps out here, they lost. It was at home.

25, 24 was the loss. And there was a play down the left side line that Brian Finneran, and he didn't catch the pass. Bill Nova's finest. Yeah. And then they ended up cutting Finneran. I mean, whether, you know, causation correlation, you can, history has a way of kind of modifying that, if you will. But the reality is, like, that was memorable because it was the first game of Andy. and they didn't start McNabb.

They would get McNabb in here and there. But, you know, it was rough going early on. But I remember the Brian Finneran thing specifically when I think of opening days. Yeah, that was a little bit. I don't remember that. Zach, if I remember correctly, that game might have been blacked out locally. That might have been the era where the Eagles couldn't fill the stadium.

And you had to listen to some of the games on the radio. That was at the Cardinals. Plummer? Yes. No, no, no. I'm sorry. That was, yeah, yeah, I'll correct. That was the Cardinals, Jake Plummer.

Yep. Okay. Yeah. Which was so weird when the Cardinals were in the NFC East. You know, you had all of these classic rivals and then a team in Arizona for some reason playing in the NFC East. Yeah, it was a good trip for the for the writers. That's for sure.

Totally. Totally. So your last memorable preseason game. And then we'll get into some quick Phillies Eagles. before we talked about the stadium. Yeah. So, and look, Zach, there are a bunch, but for some reason this one stands out.

Because, like, look, it's what we talked about earlier. It was a sign of things to come for the season. And that is 2010 opener against the Green Bay Packers. The Eagles are wearing the Kelly Green jerseys. And it was the start of the Kevin Cobb era. It was also the end of the Kevin Cobb era, unfortunately. For him, he gets a concussion early on in the game. And Mike Vic comes in.

And, Zach, I just remember thinking like, my expectations were not that high for Vic at this point. You know, he had been used as kind of a gadget player the year before. They got him into some blowouts. But Donovan was the quarterback the previous season, although Vic was a major storyline just coming out of prison. And the Eagles were the ones who signed him. And, you know, I remember that training camp was like, it was kind of a media circus, if I remember correctly. Yep. But I just remember, Vic comes into that game.

after Cobb gets hurt, Zach. And he is just shot out of an absolute cannon. Like he was flying. And the Eagles were getting dominated to that point. Like, and of course they end up losing to the Packers in the wild card round as well. But he was just like, I mean, obviously he looked so cool because he had the Kelly Green jersey on too. But Vic drags them back into that game basically with just his athleticism. And it's funny because he took so much.

many big hits that year. He was so good that entire year. But by the end of the year, you could just see, like, he was moving differently because of all of those big hits. But when you first got him, you know, in that Packers game, in the, I believe they played the Lions the next week, and Andy made the decision, like, I liked what I saw from this guy. I want him to be the starting quarterback. And Vic took the job. And he never relinquished it that season. But by the end of it, he was pretty beat up. And as you know, like Mike Vic, when he's walking around the NovaCare complex, not a huge guy. And so for somebody,

although that's relative, but yeah. Yeah, that is relative. Yeah, like just, yeah, fair enough. Bigger than both of us. But for somebody who's, you know, just like six feet, average kind of build for him to be taking the shots he did. And of course, we know he never slid, you know, it took a big toll on him.

But anyway, that first game, even though they lost, it turned out to be kind of a sign of things to come that Mike Vick was going to have this incredible season. Yeah, I remember monitoring that game. I was covering the Giants at the time. So I was not able to watch it as intensely as people in Philly were. But you're absolutely right. And then all of that that happened that day with Stort Bradley and Kevin Cobb, Leonard Weaver.

There were a lot of injuries there. The last one for me is 2015. So I talked about the beginning of the chip era. Here's the end of the chip era. They were down in Atlanta. It was also a Monday night game. Sam Bradford, DeMarco Murray, a big year for the Eagles.

They just got rid of LaShawn. They're down 23 at halftime. DeMarco Murray had eight carries for nine yards in that game. Byron Maxwell, their high-price signing, couldn't stop Julio Jones. Now, I want to remind everyone, a lot of people can't stop Julio Jones. He's a really good player.

But the reality is, when you saw that, that day, you're like, man, this might not work. This is not the same team. from 2013. The offense was different. They weren't as creative, and the warning signs that were apparent that day

came to fruition that year. Yep. Another perfect example of what you saw in the first game is kind of what you saw the rest of the year. The offense was not moving quite as easily. And, Zach, the thing I remember, the hype for that game was through the roof because in the preseason, Chip basically viewed the preseason,

much differently than the Nick Siriani does now. Like that third game at Green Bay, I think Bradford, it was 21-0-0 in the first quarter when they took everybody out. It looked unbelievable. They're throwing a sproles. It's just, I remember I was down at the Jersey Shore watching the game with some of my friends,

and we were like, oh, my gosh, this is the year. And then they get into a real game, and you saw kind of what a slog it would be for the rest of the year. There you go. So in a minute here, we're going to kind of go through some Eagles, Phillies, comparisons. But before we do, let me tell you, we know it's opening day. Spring is in the air. It's also the spring home buying market.

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96 calories per 12 ounces. So I do want to make sure we get some stadium talk in. I think it's an interesting quality or an interesting conversation. We don't have to spend too much time on this. But I always like to think, you know, these players have a certain persona in this town. It's not just kind of the product on the field, but it's kind of like who they are, how they represent themselves, the reputation in the fan base. So we kind of made a list of some of the high-profile players on the Phillies.

I'm curious which ones would be your Eagles comp. And you don't have to go through all of them. But maybe pick like three or four that jumped to mind for. or all right, this is like the Eagles version of Bryce Harper. This is the Eagles version of Aaron Noah, that kind of thing. Yeah, there's a few I have, Zach. So one that stood out to me was Trey Turner, who, you know, I was at one of the playoff games last year.

And he did one of those, have you ever seen one of those cool Trey Turner slides where he, you know, he basically glides and he just kind of touches home plate or he slides in the third base watching him run the bases, first off, like watching him run the bases compared to say Kyle Schwerber is. pretty jarring the difference between the two of them. But he's just, he's cool. I can't really say it any other way. It's like aesthetically pleasing

to watch him run the bases. And I know Trey had that prolonged slump last year. So I'm not comparing him to this player in that way. But just from like it's fun to watch him play, he reminds me of Devante Smith a little bit. You know, just like another really smooth runner, just fun to watch him get open. And when he is succeeding,

when he is making plays, obviously both of them, excellent players. It's just fun to watch. So that would be my first one. Okay, real quick here, I just want to add, add this in a few seconds too late, but thanks for the chat for bringing this up to me, is I just need to give a quick disclaimer that time's changed, but you can always enjoy the great taste of Miller Light. Taste like Miller Time to get Miller Light delivered right to your door, visit Millerlight.com slash pHLY Birds, or you can find it pretty much anywhere that sells beer. Celebrate responsibly. Miller Brewing Company in Milwaukee,

Wisconsin, 96 calories per 12 ounces. I'm not sure if I said that the first time or not, but I saw it in the chat and I just want to make sure I got that out there. So yeah, so I hear what you're saying. He does have that smooth quality to him, Trey Turner. But yeah, so that's a good comparison. I actually, though, went with a different wide receiver for Trey. And I went with AJ Brown because they both arrived here like at the top of their game, you know, at the top of their gain, they're both high profile additions meant to kind of bring a good team to a higher level. And, you know, they, they both make for talk radio fodder, if you will, in their own prospective ways. But, you know, you can make an argument. And I've made this argument that like

Trey Turner is one of the elite players in baseball. When the Phillies signed him, I was like, they got their guy. Like, like this is, Trey Turner is so much fun to watch. And I'd say that's about AJ Brown. AJ Brown's on a Hall of Fame trajectory. So, all right, by, I like your Devante comparison. Which one do you have next there? So I have another one.

And again, like this is not exactly this player is as good as this player. This player is, you know, the exact same type of guy. So bear with me here, Zach. JT. Real Muto, he reminds me of Jason Kelsey a little bit. And it's in this sense because Kelsey is much better player than Rayl Muto, I think, obviously, much more beloved than JT is. JT is a, I find him to be wildly frustrating at the plate a lot of the time. But they are team leaders that have to do the grunt work. And one of the best things that JT did, do you remember the video?

this was like two or three years ago, the terrible relief pitcher comes sprinting out of the bullpen. And he's like not very good. And he's sprinting and he's like, he's on the mound and he's still gasped because he's like trying to be Usain Bolt coming out of the pen. And JT takes one look at him and the camera focuses on him. And he just gives us look like, oh my God, this guy like this is,

this is going to be terrible. It's a meme. Yeah. Yeah, it has become a meme. Anyway, from that exact moment, And I remember sometimes I go back to the Phillies celebrations when they advance around or when they won the National League. Like as a lot of the other players are piling up on each other, JT's just like quietly taken off the shin pads. He's talking to Topper.

And it's not like he isn't happy. He's just like, I think catching takes a lot out of you, Zach. I think the fact that you have to be so locked in on every pitch, the fact that you probably get the ball fouled off you four times a game. you know, those type of things. I think it's just like a quiet exhale. You know, we got out of that. It reminds me of Jason Kelsey after the tush push, man. Like, you know, he would get up from the pile and just be like, man, that was,

that was pretty exhausting. So in that sense that they are very good players and they have to do kind of the unsung work, they get their bodies beat up quite a bit. I saw some similarities between those two. Okay. I actually went with Devante for JT for the reasons. that you mentioned. Like he's not,

he's not the most demonstrative. But he's, he's almost like the ballplayers ball player, right? You talk to the players on the Phillies and you say, who's, who's, who's the guy in here who, who,

who's, who's like the guy on the team. And that's kind of how it is with, with Devante. Devante is, he's not overly flashy. He's just so efficient. He's so effective.

And everyone respects the heck out of him. So that's, that's, That's who I would go with there. I want to know who the player equivalent of the fanatic is. I think that's also Kelsey in other ways, probably. Okay. So I have one, I have a couple more, Zach.

So Bryce Harper, you mentioned him. Who was the guy that you had for him? Yeah, I went Jason Kelsey. And I know people in the chat were saying J. Alan Hertz, but to me, like, Bryce Harper, one of the endearing things about him is like the appreciation for Philadelphia. and you could say it's pandering, but it seems genuine.

Like he chose to sign here. Now they offer him a lot of money to sign here. But he's Bryce, he's like a superstar who picked Philly. And he loves, he kind of loves being part of the fabric of the city. I saw what he came to the stadium in today. And that, to me,

more than anything else, is Jason Kelsey. Like Jason Kelsey's an elite player, of course. But he also, like, he loves playing in Philadelphia. So that's why I compared those two. Yeah, for Harper, I was thinking about putting Kelsey there for the same exact reason, the off-field stuff. On the field, though, I actually had A.J. Brown for him because I just think A.J. Brown, like Bryce Harper,

is the best player on the team, right? And he's the guy who could take over and he's the guy at certain points where you're like, man, we just have the best guy on the field and just throw him the ball and he's going to make the big place. So that's where I went for him. I have one more, and it's a specific year for the Eagles player. So Zach Wheeler, I think is 2022 Jalen Hertz, because I just think Zach Wheeler quietly goes about his business. Like a couple weeks ago, he signs that huge contract and he talks about, you know, my wife is from here or from around here. We get to see her family a lot of the time.

That's a big deal. And I remember thinking, like, man, I don't think I had ever heard this. And frankly, I don't think I had ever heard this. heard Zach Wheeler speak. And as somebody who like pays attention a lot to the media aspect of all these Philadelphia sports, it just struck me of, oh, man, this guy's been great for four years here. And I just don't know a ton about him.

I thoroughly enjoy watching him. It's kind of like Jalen, right? Jalen a little more of a private guy. He is a quiet sort of leader. It doesn't work perfectly because the quarterback certainly has to have more of a leadership aspect to him than just one starting pitcher. He pitches once every five days. But yeah.

All right. That is a good one there. I'm going to give you two real quick here because I do want to get to the stadium conversation. Nick Castellanos and Darius Lay, both like really valuable players, both kind of frustrate the fan base sometimes in their own way. Both will say things sometimes that will crack you off.

You know, say things sometimes that will make you late. but or that will kind of make you scratch your head but I got Slay and Nick Casillas and then my last one here is Jose Alvarado and Jordan Milata just like lovable big guys who are going to yeah who are going to fill it up for you so I those are the two that I went with there I like those two let's let's leave on those I actually had a I had Jalen Carter for Alvarado just like Okay. Two huge guys who Jose Alvarado can sort of flash with his stuff. Like he's just absolutely filthy when he is locating his pitches.

And Jordan Davis, too, like a couple of those sacks last year were just, I mean, they took your breath away. They were such amazing plays, right? So that's where I went there. So the last thing we'll get into today, and this is Phillies Eagles related, but also the other Philly sports teams is it was announced last week that, you know, John Middleton and the Phillies are getting involved. in the proposed South Philly project where XFFindy Live currently is that kind of redoing the stadium complex, the renderings look impressive, and the Phillies are involved. And it was proposed to Jeffrey Lurie this week at the league meetings,

are the Eagles involved? And he says they're always in conversations with Comcast and with the Phillies. They're kind of partners in the stadium complex, if you will, but the Eagles aren't involved now in that. And, you know, they have like eight to nine years left on their. lease and they have to do what's best for the Eagles. So this ties into a mailback question we did not get into yesterday. But yeah, I'll open the floor to you.

How do you see kind of the Eagles part in the South Philly complex and what intrigues you about this? Well, I think what intrigues me, Zach, is that you have a situation where the Phillies have teamed up with the Flyers, essentially, in this sort of PR war against the Sixers, right? The Sixers have been pretty adamant that they want to move to Center City to Market Street, like the Fashion District area right now. And that proposal is, I think, as the Sixers probably knew when they just announced it, well, maybe they didn't know because they didn't alert the surrounding communities, a little bit of a PR gaff there, that it's very controversial, right? And getting stadiums built in really any big city at this point is controversial. You know, where are you getting the funding from? How is it going to affect the surrounding areas, which I think is kind of the more pressing issue here where it's like, you know,

do we need two arenas, those type of things? What does it do to Chinatown and the surrounding areas? So as you have had the Sixers make this push, and again, their lease, I think, ends in 2030 for the Wells Fargo Center. And by the way, like, if somebody who's covered the Sixers, I will say, I do understand why. they want their own building. Like they want to make money off of it first up,

but the Wells Fargo Center also, in terms of modern arenas, yeah, they have redone the concourses and the fan experience is not quite as bad. The stuff on the arena level, it's pretty bad compared. I haven't been in every hockey arena at this point, but for a basketball facility,

you know, there are places like, I went to Sacramento a couple times over the past couple years, and it's just wild how much better their facilities are, how much better their new building is. But anyway, you have this PR war now, right?

And it's, you know, the Phillies and the Flyers are trying to build this kind of huge, ambitious project that they have proposed where, you know, it's like hotels. It's, you know, I think there's like a concert venue involved. Apartments. They're trying to revamp all of the parking lots in the South Philly sports complex. And it's, you know, we'll see if they can get that through. Again, I think that's also going to be controversial if they, uh, if they move forward with it. But I guess the good reason to talk about it here is that the one team that is down

there that has not picked the side yet, Philadelphia Eagles, right? And Lurie gets asked about it the other day. And, you know, I'm curious what he thinks about it, right? Because like you and Bo talked about, the link is, I think the link is in much better shape than the Wells Fargo Center is. But, you know, you see stadiums that are built around the same time as the link are getting revamped, those type of things. I'm curious to see how Jeffrey Lurie, how the Eagles, their business side views all the stuff going around them and then also what's going on with the link as well.

Yeah, that's that's really good insight there because so a few things. First off, the Sixers Arena Project, I understand it's a nuanced discussion for, you know, and it's it's a debate that that would take far more time than like what we'll get into here. I mean, I can say as someone who used to work at Aethon Market, you know, that's that I would love to see that at that area revitalized, right? And I would love to see that that area have become a destination, which it certainly is. It's not now here. But it's not the moment. But I understand there's a lot of nuance involved. And I also think that from I agree with with what you said about like the fact that the well. Farker's a multi-purpose arena and the best NBA arenas now. I've been reading a lot about what the clippers are building. And, you know, I was down the street the other day from the patient.

You read about all the bathrooms that they're building there? Yeah. He bomber is is absolutely locked in on being able to go to the bathroom quickly and get back to your seat. Yeah. I heard it's almost going to be like, you know, like theater lights almost where you're not walking around the concourse during the game. you're at your seats and that and just the it behooves the Sixers to want a place where they can own and operate that that they have the preferred dates and that it's built for, you know, basketball viewing. And a lot changes with arenas over 30 years. You can retrofit them. But there's a lot of advances in technology and stadium architecture, things of that nature.

That said, I understand this is like a nuanced discussion and I'm not educated enough to certainly get on here to give my opinion of like all the dynamics at play. The Eagles thing. We're just laying out. Yes. Yeah. This side wants this. That side wants this. Yeah.

And really kind of what this means for the sports complex moving forward. Sure. So go ahead with the Eagles. So then the Eagles part of it, it's fascinating. And that come, you know, the fact that they're not picking a side in this. The stadium complex is the Eagles are a part of it, of course, right? And, you know, tailgating is a big part of the football game day experience. Huge part.

That said, the Eagles are the biggest ticket in town. I mean, they're the team above all else. Like, as I know Comcast and the kind of the power that it has and the dates that the arena fills and then the Phillies have had more dates there, the Eagles are the biggest team in town. And so the fact that Jeffrey Lurie referenced when that lease ends, and Bo and I spoke about it the other day, that was an interesting slip in here. And it's pretty soon to, or it's pretty early to kind of speculate about what they're going to do.

But similarly, football stadium architecture has evolved during the 20 plus years that the link has been open or the 20 years that the link has opened in. I think football is a little different than, well, it's a lot different than basketball just in terms of the volume of people who are coming to the games. Like you're a 70,000 seat stadium in Center City is different than a 20,000 seat arena. Yeah. So, but as far as like a big part of this too, and if you've been to New England and you see the Patriot Place and like the Reef, you know, the fact that they own and operate the retail and the restaurants around the arena. And, you know, the big, I said this the other day, like what the Braves have down in Battery Park is a big part of kind of like how the Braves have grown here.

And it's something that a lot of teams are looking at. And I think, but in terms of stadium architecture, like you go to Los Angeles and you see that stadium, it's a lot different than what's in Philly now. You know, the Lincoln Financial Field, it was built during a period of time. when you look at stadiums like the Eagle Stadium and the Steelers Stadium, right, the Ravens Stadium. It was during that period. Stadium's now like the Vikings and the Rams, the bills are working on a new stadium here. The Titans are working on a new stadium here. They're different types of buildings, different types of experiences. So this is all a way of saying is that my radar is up about what the Eagles are going to do. I think if the Eagles kind of lent their support to that project, that would be huge for that South Philly area.

Just the dates that the Flyers and the Phillies have, you know you're going to be down there. The football attending experience is different. But I think the Eagles are the huge wild card in this stadium's complex debate. Well, and especially too. How many years did you say we're left on the Eagles lease? So Jeffrey said eight or nine years. I would need that. So they moved in in what?

They moved in in 2003. And so I have to see if it was a 30 year lease. Maybe it was 30. Yeah. Yeah. But nonetheless, this is like this isn't 20 years away. We know that, you know? Yeah.

And frankly, Zach, when it, you know, the Sixers, I think, had, they have 10 years left on their lease. They had like nine years, I think, at least when they announced their plans. to try and build this arena in Center City. I think it's something that probably we'll hear about in the next couple of years because when you have decisions that are this big and involve, you know, these huge stadium structures and all of this construction, you can't like say it a year before the Lee sends. So I'm sure the Eagles are behind the scenes kind of deliberating their, you know,

what their options are and we'll see. But they're going to be a part of this, I think, because it's like you said, they are the most important team in this town and I think that has a chance to kind of change the discussion on a lot of things especially if you have these three teams that are joined together on this project including the biggest ticket in town so just something to keep an eye on and and the last thing I would add there is a big difference of course between the eagles the Phillies for that matter and then the sixers is the eagles are the primary ten of, you know, Lincoln Financial Field.

If there's is the primary tenant of Citizens Bank Park. The Sixers are not the primary tenant at Wells Fargo Center, or at least they would be quick to tell you. That's the case. But, no, this is something that is definitely on my radar for sure. Rich, this has been a fun three days. Each show has gone by quicker. Then we kind of mapped out, which is a good sign.

And love talking football with you. look forward to doing it again. We are going to be back on Monday with Bo. And when we're back on Monday, it is April 1st. And I point that out because it's April 1st. It is, well, it's April Fool's Day. So please pray for me because who knows what was going to. There's going to be some surprises in store for you.

But the reason I brought up people first is it's draft season, right? And we're going to go deep into the draft. So the place to turn is the P.H.L.Y. show hit the like button um we will hear from rich hopefully before then rich thanks for joining us this this week has been awesome been a lot of fun man uh brena thanks for your help today and we will see you on monday hope everyone has a great weekend enjoy philly's opening day enjoy philly's opening weekend bo would say as always we love you i would say we'll do better tomorrow but this time i'll say we'll do better on monday thanks for watching

like the mayor.