Expert opinion: Doctoring as an Eagles frenemy
Chiefs fan-physician finds he can bond with patients over rivalry, even if Eagles have to remain second to Kansas City in his heart.

Two years ago, I received a text message from my patient’s son. “My dad wants to bet you a cheesesteak on the game.” I thought about it and wrote back, “Ok, I’m in.”
Beyond being a doctor, I am a lifelong, die-hard Kansas City Chiefs fan who has lived in Philadelphia for over 12 years, and that cheesesteak bet centered on the first Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl. My patient, John, is a die-hard Eagles fan who is nonetheless grateful for my organizing his complex care. He had even generously labeled me the “Patrick Mahomes” of his doctors.
We all remember how that game turned out. And the dynamic has changed for me as a Chiefs fan doctor in Philly over the last five years.
I wrote an Inquirer column about connecting with patients despite our football rivalry in 2020, the morning after the Chiefs won their first modern era Super Bowl, the first in my life as a then long-suffering Chiefs fan. I celebrated for my hometown team just as I had for the Eagles in 2018.
To be clear, I’ve always rooted for the Eagles (they’re my #2). I always want them to win, unless it’s against my hometown team — and until recently, how often did that ever happen or create conflict? I would chat football with patients, and many used to look at me with empathy and either pangs of regret or relief, considering my team with their ex-coach Andy Reid. They granted me kindness and even shared enthusiasm when Andy finally got his win.
But that first win over the 49ers was about all Eagles fans would support me on, as we Chiefs fans quickly became villains. A week before the first Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl, wearing my Chiefs paraphernalia, as I do, I walked into a coffee shop in my progressive Mount Airy neighborhood. Taking my order, the barista complimented me for my “willingness to embrace and show [my] true identity,” then added: “and I guess you aren’t afraid of batteries.”
After that game’s intense and perhaps controversial ending, something definitely changed. What had given me pride, representing my hometown while in Philly, was suddenly awkward. I never wanted to be the enemy. Even now, two years later, I tend to eschew wearing a bright red Chiefs hat (I own several) and keep my fandom more subtle, with a sweater or scarf hidden under my jacket, or a pair of socks beneath my scrubs. It’s not that I think anyone would start a fight with me, I just don’t want to be perceived as an “other” or be looked at funny.
The other day, with the rematch set up, a patient saw my KC socks and told me I was “brave.” As a doctor, I take pride in showing my personality and wearing my heart on my sleeve, so to speak, or more accurately on my socks. But I wondered: Could something like sports fandom actually create distance or skepticism from my patients?
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In other ways, this new rivalry has brought me closer to patients. Patients like to playfully needle me if they hear I’m from Kansas City, and I expect that to only ramp up. Once patients learn that I’m not some bandwagon fan, that I grew up in Kansas City, and that no, my football loyalties have nothing to do with Taylor Swift, there is a begrudging respect.
Many love to tease me about it, but I earnestly think that my willingness to be real about my fandom — and not just take the easy way out and pretend to be all Eagles all the time — is building credibility for my medical advice. Maybe it shows that when it comes to their medical care, my patients can trust me to be real in all arenas. Even if we don’t see eye to eye on football, when it comes to their health, I’m 100% on their team.
Three months after the last Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl, my patient John made good on his bet, and we shared cheesesteaks outside of Dalessandro’s in Roxborough. We enjoyed it so much, it quickly became a tradition after his routine appointments every three months, which we intentionally scheduled around the lunch hour. We even organized a blind taste test of every meat and cheese combination for my then-office to try, looking to settle the long-standing neighborhood debate between Dalessandro’s and Chubby’s. (By my office’s votes: Chubby’s won overall, but Dalessandro’s steak with wiz came in at #2). We have yet to set terms regarding any cheesesteak bet for this year.
I’ve asked myself ahead of this Super Bowl rivalry redux: Should I root for the Eagles to win and even the score? Or stick to my guns? I’ve had to calibrate being true to my hometown, while embracing a new one. But ultimately, I can’t really lose, either my hometown or my adopted home will win the Super Bowl this year.
Let me be real, though, of course I want the Chiefs to win and three-peat, but I genuinely wish the best to the Eagles!
Jules Lipoff practices as a board-certified dermatologist for The Dermatology Specialists in Old City and serves as a clinical associate professor (adjunct) in the Department of Dermatology, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University.