Dee-fense 🦅 | Sports Daily Newsletter

First things first before we talk about trivial things like NFL games: Helene, a Category 4 hurricane, was set to make landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast last night. Here’s a prayer that Floridians emerge safely from the storm.

Now, assuming that Raymond James Stadium in Tampa will be good to go for the game on Sunday, the Buccaneers will host the Eagles in a rematch of their wild-card playoff game in January. Eagles fans have little good to remember from that 32-9 loss.

This time around? The Eagles offense is likely to be missing A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Lane Johnson because of injuries. Sounds like Saquon Barkley will be as busy as ever. And on the defensive side, the good vibes are abound after the 15-12 win in New Orleans. Jalen Carter had arguably his best game as an Eagle, and the defensive tackle could be poised for another smashing performance against the Bucs, who allowed seven sacks last week.

Even with the injuries, Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles still views the Eagles as a major offensive threat.

If anything, the injury situation has given veteran receiver Parris Campbell a new start with the Birds. “You never know,” Campbell says. “Now I got an opportunity on my hands.”

Next: The Eagles visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday at 1 p.m. (Fox29).

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

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The Eagles play in Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Join Eagles beat reporters Olivia Reiner and EJ Smith as they dissect the hottest storylines surrounding the team on Gameday Central, live from Raymond James Stadium.

Picture this: After three games in Milwaukee this weekend, the Mets return to Atlanta for 18 innings thanks to the postponement of two games due to Hurricane Helene. They eke into the playoffs, fly back to Milwaukee — or out to San Diego (gulp) — for a wild-card series that opens Tuesday. They play two, maybe three games in three days and advance to Game 1 of the division series next Saturday in South Philly.

How’s that for chaos? And the Phillies will be prying spectators, like those memes of someone eating popcorn while drama unfolds before them. But they also must sort out a few items of their own. With three games left in the season, here are three thoughts on the playoffs ahead.

Next: The Phillies open their final series of the regular season at 6:45 tonight in Washington (NBCSP). Ranger Suárez (12-7, 3.15 ERA) will get his final tune-up before the playoffs against Nationals right-hander Trevor Williams (5-1, 2.19).

The summer of 1964 was a mostly magical one for Phillies fans, until … The season can be summed up by this: 6½ games up with 12 to play. No pennant. No World Series. It still stings for the fans and the players who remain from that fateful season. Sixty years later, it seems that the players from the ‘64 Phils, like Jack Baldschun, simply fade away with little fanfare.

John Briggs was a rookie outfielder on those ‘64 Phillies who is still going strong, although glaucoma has taken his sight.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker has made it clear she’s on board with the 76ers bringing a WNBA team to Philadelphia if the new arena gets built. On Thursday, the Sixers confirmed they’ve been “engaged with the league” about it. So is the city one step closer to a WNBA team? Here is Jonathan Tannenwald’s take.

The WNBA playoffs already have produced plenty of drama as the New York Liberty try again to capture an elusive title.

Alexei Kolosov is headed to Flyers training camp after all, according to his agent. General manager Danny Brière had said that the Belarusian goalie would not be at camp, but reports indicated that Kolosov was flying to Philadelphia. His agent, Daniel Milstein, says that Kolosov is all-in. Last season, there were reports that the goalie was unhappy and homesick during his brief stint with Lehigh Valley, but Milstein says that “all previous concerns have been thoroughly addressed and are now resolved.”

Undersized defenseman Emil Andrae would like to resolve things himself as he fights for a roster spot.

For the first time, Matvei Michkov was introduced at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday night for the Flyers’ first home preseason game and he didn’t disappoint. Michkov scored an empty-netter and picked up a secondary assist in the win over the Islanders.

Next: The Flyers host the Bruins for a preseason game at 7 p.m. Saturday (NBCSP+).

Here are our Philly fan photos for this week as part of our Friday lineup. To keep this feature going, we’ll need you to keep submitting photos with a Philly sports theme. Send your photos here for the opportunity to be featured.

In the latest episode of unCovering the Birds, after a 15-12 win against the Saints, Jeff McLane has exclusive interviews featuring C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Jordan Davis, and Jalen Carter. Dive into discussions on Jalen Hurts’ leadership growth and his pursuit of elite consistency, plus insights into Nick Sirianni’s decision-making process. Check out the “Pick 6″ segment with Nakobe Dean, in which he breaks down the pivotal moments from the week. Listen now.

Here’s a place to access your favorite Philadelphia teams’ statistics, schedules, and standings in real time.

Also check out a fun new game we call Bird Box to test your knowledge of Eagles players past and present.

We asked you: What are your predictions for the Eagles this Sunday, and how might the offense look? Among your responses:

Given the stellar workhorse SB in the backfield is all the Birds have, and two of their wide “Flyers” are questionable, it’s fitting we borrow a line from the old WWII tune of those times — the Birds will be “Coming in on a Wing and a Prayer!” Can the workhorse catch? Is Nick able to call a play without a coaching group consensus? Jalen does so ever so frequently. — John B.

This week is a building block for the Birds. They will be without AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, Lane Johnson, Britain Covey. Mekhi Becton is hurting and several other Eagles are injured. We will see second line wide receivers asked to step up, more dependence on the run game and tight ends. Then we get a bye for everyone to recover, This is a week to build depth. On top of all that we still can squeeze out a win with our improving defense. — Richard F.

Jalen Hurts will throw at least 1 interception (like he’s done every game so far). Nick Sirianni will eschew at least 1 FG attempt, going for it and failing to make a first down instead. This will come back to bite the Eagles (again), when they lose to Tampa Bay, 31-29. During the postgame presser, Sirianni will claim he stands by his foolish decisions, while Jeffrey Lurie places a call to Bill Belichick. — Stephen T.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Matt Breen, EJ Smith, Jeff Neiburg, Olivia Reiner, Jeff McLane, Ariel Simpson, Jackie Spiegel, Scott Lauber, Jonathan Tannenwald, Aaron Carter, Joe Santoliquito, and Conor Smith.

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.

That closes the book on another week of Sports Daily. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you on Monday. — Jim