Vic Fangio’s little fib; LIV shines at Aronimink PGA as pathways back are expected to get easier
The defensive coordinator told the team he was done at one point, according to one report, then reconsidered, but now says he was never gone. Unlike LIV, which will be gone sooner than later.
The Eagles played their last game Jan. 11, a home playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers in which the defense allowed just 23 points and forced two turnovers.
For the next 20 days, sources at the time said, defensive coordinator Fangio declined to commit to returning to the team for a third season. He was 67, and he again was contemplating retirement. The team was in flux, with expected personnel losses on the defensive side of the ball, a rift between head coach Nick Sirianni and iconic offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland that led to Stoutland’s abrupt departure, and a change at offensive coordinator for the fourth time in Sirianni’s five seasons.
During that 20-day span, sources say, the Eagles contacted former DCs Jonathan Gannon and Jim Schwartz to gauge their interest in the job, should Fangio depart.
Then, on Feb. 1, one longtime beat writer reported that Fangio actually had informed the Eagles that he had decided to retire but that the Eagles persuaded him to stay. The Eagles did not refute the report.
The next day, a report stated that Fangio was, indeed, leaning toward staying, and two days later, a definitive report appeared stating that Fangio was coming back.
» READ MORE: Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said he ‘wasn’t close’ to retiring and may coach beyond 2026
Fangio, the most honest coach in recent Philadelphia history, spoke Thursday.
“I wasn’t close,” he said.
“I never really got serious,” he said.
Oh, please.
LIV’s reabsorption began at Aronimink
It might have been a visceral revulsion at the concept and execution of LIV Golf, as a repressive Saudi Arabian government sought to sportswash its connections with terrorism (see: 9/11) and murder (see: Jamal Khashoggi).
But golfers suspended by the PGA Tour for defecting to LIV playing at the majors for which they remained qualified or wrangled invitations always added an angle of intrigue at those events. When Brooks Koepka took the 2023 PGA Championship and Bryson DeChambeau triumphed at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, of all places, it seemed like the bad guys won.
Marcus Hayes alerts
As it turns out, they have not.
After spending nearly $6 billion on player contracts, bloated tournament purses, and assorted perks for a tour whose events attracted few fans and scant TV viewership, the Saudis in April announced that they would pull funding for the league after 2026, and LIV chief Yasir Al-Rumayyan stepped down.
LIV swore to forge ahead and try to find other backing, which delighted DeChambeau. These days, he’s primarily a YouTube star, but his LIV deal expires at the end of this year and he’s reportedly been angling for a $500 million LIV payday (good luck).
» READ MORE: Marcus Hayes: Aronimink and Philly fans star at the PGA Championship in a year of big events in Philadelphia
This created an atmosphere of uncertainty for the 11 LIV players last week at the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club, who generally declined to speculate about their futures and the future of their employer. As the week progressed, one industry source told me, “[LIV’s convulsion] isn’t close to being over.”
At the time, that comment was vague. Two days after the tournament’s end, though, it became clearer: Bloomberg.com reported that LIV was preparing to file for bankruptcy, a move that might, beyond 2026, protect the tour from fully honoring existing contracts, like Jon Rahm’s, which runs through 2027.
All of which begs the question: What will LIV players do?
Simple.
The best ones will return to the PGA Tour as soon as they can lace up their spikes.
That’s why Koepka, Rahm, Cam Smith, and DeChambeau were expressly invited back in January. They move the needle. Koepka accepted, with financial and eligibility restrictions. Masters champion Patrick Reed also is working his way back to the PGA Tour. So are others.
» READ MORE: Marcus Hayes: Struggling Bryson DeChambeau and LIV mates look to revive their impact in the majors at Aronimink
“I don’t think it’s going to be very hard for the rest of them [to return],” said one golf source with a rooting interest for LIV.
That source echoed what the new PGA Tour boss told a podcast a few days before the PGA Championship.
“I’m interested in whatever makes the PGA Tour better,” said PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, who was hired in October.
Rolapp is a former NFL exec. That’s the league that long ignored steroid, concussion, and domestic abuse epidemics. You might not like LIV or its roster of defectors, but Rolapp does not care about your feelings. Rolapp cares about product.
Before last week, though, the LIV product — the golfers — largely was unappealing. LIV suddenly again has an appealing product.
In the seven majors between DeChambeau’s win at Pinehurst and the beginning of the PGA at Aronimink, LIV golfers had won none and finished in the top 10 just 11 times.
» READ MORE: Marcus Hayes: Aronimink is hosting the PGA, but Donald Ross’ local muni Jeffersonville gets its ‘major’ next week
At the PGA, Rahm finished tied for second. Smith, with a new swing coach, finished tied for seventh. David Puig and Joaquin Niemann tied for 18th. DeChambeau, this generation’s biggest basher, missed the cut, but Dustin Johnson, the previous generation’s biggest basher, made it.
After he won the U.S. Open in 2024, DeChambeau made a plea for the tours to somehow come to an agreement that would allow the world’s best golfers to more regularly compete against each other.
As Rahm stood near the top of the leaderboard after the third round, he was asked if his winning would resonate for LIV. His reply:
“I’m thinking more about myself.”
Despite the number of LIV contenders, that was one of the few questions in the entire week regarding the impact a LIV win would have on the golf world. The disinterest in LIV at the PGA was refreshing.
It seemed to turn the page.
