Reinforcements are coming | Sports Daily Newsletter

Howie Roseman did not wait until this afternoon’s NFL trade deadline in his bid to improve the Eagles defense. Yesterday he acquired Jaelan Phillips from the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a 2026 third-round draft pick, shoring up an edge rushing corps that had been lacking this season.

On Saturday, the Eagles fortified the cornerback position by trading with the Baltimore Ravens for Jaire Alexander, a two-time Pro Bowl player who might be on the downside of his career. Last week, Roseman made a deal for Jets cornerback Michael Carter II.

Of course, Roseman did not restock at edge rusher in the offseason after the free-agent departures of Milton Williams and Josh Sweat, as Marcus Hayes notes. He also did not adequately replace free-agent cornerbacks Darius Slay and Isaiah Rodgers.

Maybe he is making up for those oversights now. A first-round pick in 2021, Phillips saw a promising career at outside linebacker derailed by Achilles and knee injuries, but he has played all nine games this year and has three sacks.

Phillips also has an interesting background as a classically trained piano player whose grandfather is a conductor.

Alexander has played in only 16 of his last 42 potential regular-season games because of knee injuries since 2022, when he received his last All-Pro nod. Maybe he can revive his career in the city where he was born.

Refreshed after a bye week, the 6-2 Eagles will return to action Monday night — and find themselves listed as underdogs for the first time this season. The Green Bay Packers are 2.5-point favorites.

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

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Quentin Grimes didn’t have the summer he expected. The 76ers guard played the best basketball of his career after coming to Philly at the trade deadline. Grimes sought a contract in the $25 million range, but he and the team couldn’t come to terms and he was forced to return on a qualifying offer. Rather than sulk or play selfishly, Grimes has embraced his role as a super sub and Sixers closer.

He’s averaging 18.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 5.2 assists and collecting clutch shots in his team’s 5-1 start. “The opportunity that coach [Nick Nurse] is giving me provides a lot of freedom out there on the court,” Grimes said. “The minutes he gave me are starter minutes to come off the bench at this point.”

Rick Tocchet has always been a no-nonsense guy who built a reputation as a player for keeping teammates accountable.

So it probably comes as no surprise that it took only 12 games for the new Flyers coach to publicly ask for more out of his players. Speaking after a lifeless 2-1 loss to Calgary on Sunday night, Tocchet was clearly disappointed in his team’s effort.

“The fans pay a lot of money here to watch games, and I don’t think we gave them a half-decent product the last two games,” the coach said. “I think they were kind of boring games, and it falls on myself. I’ve got to get these guys to start to show some will.”

But while we are holding people accountable, is one of Tocchet’s main asks — more shots on goal — really just a player problem?

We’ll see how the players respond to the challenge tonight in Montreal (7, NBCSP), but one player who won’t be available is Tyson Foerster, who was placed on injured reserve on Monday.

J.T. Realmuto is a free agent and beginning Thursday, he may sign with whichever team he wants. And the market for the iron-man catcher who will turn 35 in March promises to be fascinating.

Although Realmuto’s offense is diminished, his value behind the plate — and behind the scenes — is as high as ever, almost to the point of being unquantifiable.

Andre Blake has had more on his mind than just the Union’s playoff run. The goalkeeper has backstopped his team into the second round with one eye on his native Jamaica, which took a devastating hit from Hurricane Melissa last week.

“It’s a tough country, and the good thing right now is a lot of people are chipping in to help,” says Blake, who will suit up for his homeland soon. He will serve as captain of Jamaica’s national team for its final World Cup qualifiers on Nov. 13 and 18.

Who was the last Eagle to lead the NFL in scoring? First with the correct answer here will be featured in the newsletter.

A) Bobby Walston

B) Jake Elliott

C) LeSean McCoy

D) David Akers

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Scott Lauber, Olivia Reiner, Marcus Hayes, Sean McKeown, Ariel Simpson, Keith Pompey, Jackie Spiegel, Jonathan Tannenwald, Greg Finberg, Colin Schofield, and Tyler Delpercio.

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.

I can’t picture a Phillies team next season without J.T. Realmuto behind the plate, can you? Thanks for reading. Bella will be at the newsletter controls on Wednesday. — Jim