🦅 Rev up that offense | Sports Daily Newsletter

If the Eagles are ever going to get their offense going, this is their chance. The San Francisco 49ers have arguably the most porous defense of any playoff team, and they just lost another linebacker, Tatum Bethune, to a groin injury.

The Eagles, meanwhile, are as healthy as can be expected after they rested most starters in the season finale, as we are all abundantly aware. Lane Johnson could return for Sunday’s wild-card game. Nakobe Dean, too.

Meanwhile, San Francisco remains without star Fred Warner (ankle), and two other linebackers, Dee Winters and Luke Gifford, are nursing injuries. The Eagles could be facing a hodgepodge of Niners linebackers.

San Francisco’s pass rush is practically nonexistent. The 49ers rank second-to-last in the NFL in quarterback pressure rate (26.7%), and they have been shaky against the run, too. They gave up a season-high 180 rushing yards Saturday in a loss to the Seahawks. This looks like the perfect time to get Saquon Barkley and the running game in gear.

Of course, the Eagles offense has not been firing on all cylinders for quite some time, and coordinator Kevin Patullo looked like anything but a master mechanic again on Sunday, Jeff McLane writes.

Maybe that’s why the Eagles aren’t bigger favorites for the playoff opener at the Linc. Sportsbooks gave them a slight edge in the opening odds.

— Jim Swan, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

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❓Which Eagle do you expect to come up big against the 49ers? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.

There was a point last season when Don Mattingly was planning on calling it a career.

He went into 2025, his third year as the bench coach with the Blue Jays, expecting it to be his last in the sport. Mattingly, now 64, thought he had accomplished what he had set out to do in Toronto, helping a younger manager in John Schneider become established.

But it was his 11-year-old son, Louis, who helped change his mind. Now he’s joining the Phillies to help “lighten the load” for manager Rob Thomson as their new bench coach.

Those who knew Vic Fangio in the 1970s say he’s always been like this — stern, focused, and endearingly gruff. He coached the football team at his alma mater, Dunmore High School near Scranton, and built a reputation as a stickler when it came to the details of the game.

Now he’s directing the defense as the Eagles begin another Super Bowl run, but those who knew him back then say he’s still the same understated guy. Alex Coffey tells the story.

Tyrese Maxey has had a charmed season, becoming the franchise player for the 76ers and landing at second in the first returns of All-Star fan voting. On Monday he added to the list, being named Eastern Conference player of the week after leading the Sixers to three straight road victories. This is the second time Maxey has received the honor, with the first coming as he put the NBA on notice during opening week.

The Sixers suffered a bad loss to an undermanned Nuggets team in overtime, 125-124. The positive momentum the Sixers had built over the last few games has vanished, Keith Pompey writes in his takeaways.

The Flyers took care of some big business on Monday night, as the team announced a five-year, 25.75 million contract extension with center Christian Dvorak.

Dvorak, who turns 30 next month, is on pace for career highs of 18 goals and 51 points while playing alongside Trevor Zegras. But is five years too long for a player who will be 35 at contract’s end and has never tallied more than 38 points? Jackie Spiegel breaks down the deal.

The news wasn’t as good for Matvei Michkov, though. Coach Rick Tocchet said the young winger was being evaluated after he took a puck off his foot.

Finally, Prospect Aleksei Kolosov was named AHL player of the week. The goalie is 9-8-1 with a .910 save percentage in 18 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Do the Eagles have a harder road back to the Super Bowl now? Maybe, but not necessarily. They got some rest and eliminated any risk that they’d be short-handed to a significant degree next Sunday. The defending champs let everything play out, and now they really get to take their chances, to show that being healthy and healed up is a bigger advantage than anything they might have gained from treating Sunday’s game like their season depended on it. More from Mike Sielski.

Which Eagle had the most career Pro Bowl selections with eight? First with the correct answer here will be featured in the newsletter.

A) Jason Kelce

B) Chuck Bednarik

C) Brian Dawkins

D) Jason Peters

The Eagles are a confident bunch heading into the playoffs. Think you know which player said this? Check your answer here.

We asked: Which NFC team is the biggest threat for the Eagles? Among your responses:

The 49ers will wipe us out! The Seahawks will destroy us. Hope it was a restful day because not playing to win yesterday cost us any chance of advancing in the playoff’s. That’s what happens when your EGO gets so big, you have to walk through the doorway sideways. I also blame ownership for not overriding the HC and insisting we play to win that game. Washington was insulted thinking our scrubs could beat them! Plus most of us just knew the Lions were going to beat the Bears! Playing the Packers vs. the 49ers and having a divisional home game against flying across the country is just plain common sense. — Ronald R.

Your team is always your worst enemy. This is the NFL, the top of the mountain. You can bask in the sun or you can get down to business. Whoever shows up to play usually wins. Prepare for the other team because they are always better than you until you prepare to stop them. — Mark W.

While there are no “super teams” in the NFC, we do have to be concerned with the Bears, who beat the Eagles at home, and the Seahawks, who won 14 games with Sam Darnold leading the offense. Both are beatable, however the Eagles biggest obstacle may be themselves. The offense has to be more consistent by eliminating the all too often 3-and-outs! — Bob C.

The biggest threat and obstacle standing in the way of the Eagles returning to the SB is obviously the top-seeded Seahawks. I think the Eagles defense can contain the Bears, Packers, Rams, or Panthers, but the Eagles have lost their last four games played in Seattle and have always struggled there. — Everett S.

The Eagles are the biggest threat to themselves if they miss the NFC championship game and the Super Bowl! Why? Because the teams in the playoffs have so little experience in the last two to three seasons! ... For one the 49ers have to beat the Eagles starters at home. Two, the Rams have known the Birds have their number, losing the last three games to the Eagles. — Miles

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Jeff Neiburg, Olivia Reiner, Jeff McLane, Mike Sielski, Lochlahn March, Keith Pompey, Jackie Spiegel, Gustav Elvin, Ryan Mack, Katie Lewis, Rob Tornoe, and Ariel Simpson.

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.

Thanks for reading Sports Daily. Bella will bring you the newsletter on Tuesday. — Jim