Familiar focus | Sports Daily Newsletter

You remember the names. Donovan McNabb. Michael Vick. Carson Wentz. At one point or another, they have been deemed The Man by the Eagles’ brain trust — and paid accordingly.

And now it’s Jalen Hurts.

The Eagles made him the league’s highest-paid player Monday, when the sides agreed to a five-year contract extension that could pay him as much as $255 million and includes a franchise-first no-trade clause. And now, he’ll be expected to justify those millions.

And there’s only one way to do that — win a Super Bowl.

Hurts has a new level of pressure on him, one that’s been felt by Birds signal-callers past. Mike Sielski takes a look back at their tenures in Philly before and after they signed their deals.

— Maria McIlwain, Inquirer Sports Staff, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.

❓Do you think the Jalen Hurts-led Birds can win a Super Bowl, and, if so, how long will it take? Email us back for a chance to be featured in the newsletter.

unCovering the Birds with Jeff McLaneEp 4: Chip Kelly - Part II: The Fall

In the second installment of this two-part retrospective, listen as Philadelphia Inquirer Eagles beat reporter Jeff McLane delves into the wild and unpredictable Chip Kelly era. McLane explains the series of events that played a part in Kelly’s Eagles coaching demise. Plus, how a recent phone call between McLane and Kelly helped bring closure to an at-times rocky relationship.

Listen wherever you get your podcasts or go to Inquirer.com/podcasts

With Hurts in the fold for the coming years — he’s coming off minor ankle surgery but considered fully healthy — the Eagles can look toward building a roster that can compete for championships. Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman seem to embrace the challenge of solving that puzzle as the massive Hurts extension still leaves them the flexibility to improve the team.

One of the more cost-effective ways to do so is via the draft, and Devin Jackson has his latest seven-round mock draft, including a trade that allows the Eagles to snap up a player once considered to be the top pick in the draft.

After a third straight disappointing season, the Flyers finally acknowledged last month that they are in the early stages of a rebuild.

With a rebuild usually comes major changes, as the organization has to decide which players’ timelines align with the organization’s and who is worth keeping around versus who is worth flipping for future assets.

The Flyers and interim general manager Danny Brière have several of these tough decisions to make this offseason regarding such players, including Kevin Hayes, Tony DeAngelo, and Travis Konecny.

In that vein, we are asking you to put on your GM hat and decide for yourself which Flyers should STAY and which should GO.

Bryce Harper vs. Ranger Suárez … in batting practice. That’s about as good as it gets right now for the two Phillies who are working their way back from injuries. Harper faced Suárez before Tuesday’s game, looking to “be smart with who I’m facing” and opting for an experienced major league pitcher rather than “a guy from low-A.” There is still no public timeline for Harper’s return, but he did clear another significant hurdle.

Bryson Stott made franchise history but then saw his hitting streak come to an end as the Phillies split their doubleheader with the White Sox.

Next: The Phillies wrap up their series in Chicago at 2:10 p.m. Wednesday (NBCSP). Taijuan Walker (1-1, 4.20) will start against White Sox right-hander Mike Clevinger (2-0, 2.20).

Joel Embiid is perfectly healthy, so don’t let the headline get you riled up. But that doesn’t mean the 76ers won’t need to spend time on the court without him this postseason. And they’ll need to find the right lineup to get through those precious moments. The Inquirer’s Keith Pompey took a closer look at that group, which will be headlined by James Harden and include De’Anthony Melton, Georges Niang and a band of defenders and shooters.

Next: The Sixers, who hold a 2-0 series lead over the Nets, play Game 3 on Thursday in Brooklyn (7:30 p.m., TNT).

Telemundo is all-in: The Spanish-language broadcaster will show more women’s World Cup games on its main channel than its English-language counterpart, Fox, in a historic move.

Sister-sister: A love of basketball and competitive spirit binds these sets of sisters, who play for different City 6 schools.

Rookie of the year: South Jersey figure skater Isabeau Levito looks back on her big season on the ice.

Taking flight: Temple’s Jose Barbon, an NFL draft hopeful, has been invited to the Eagles’ pro day.

We asked: Who was the last quarterback under contract with the Eagles who won a national championship in college as the starting QB?

Answer: A: Carson Wentz. Wentz won national titles at North Dakota State in each of his seasons with the Bison, winning the first as a starter in 2014. Stephen T. was first with the correct answer.

We asked: Would you have given Hurts his contract if the choice was yours? Why or why not? Among your responses:

I definitely would have signed him to a long term deal. I think the Birds overpaid him slightly. I believe no QB should be paid more than Patrick Mahomes. But he definitely earned a contract that pays him in the top 3 or 4 in the league because that is what he was last year and it appears, at least at this moment, he will stay there for years to come.

But warning.

We thought that about Carson “INT” Wentz at one point too.

Buyer beware. — Brett M.

Jalen Hurts is a very special person who definitely needs to be paid what he is worth. He is the complete package of physical talent, mental capability, and most importantly — leadership and dedication. We were privileged to have seen his talents throughout this past season and he left no doubt in my mind that he is an amazingly gifted athlete who is ready to take this team on another exciting ride to the Super Bowl. If Mr. Laurie was to announce to the league that he was putting Jalen up for sale to the highest bidder, it would be a madhouse as our billionaire owners scrambled to outbid each other. Mr. Hurts is now just a young man, but watching him perform you can’t help but think that your are watching a soon to be GOAT. — Everett S.

All sports salaries have gotten out of control. Relative to his peers Jalen may be worth the money. However no one is worth 50 million a year. Especially to play a game, and not even full time at that someone should undertake looking in to how we got to this extreme. The average family or person can not afford to go to a game without sacrificing. Where did it star? tIs it the advertisers. They pay more to sell their products but the cost of the product goes up proportionately. Is it the programmers, broadcasters. They bid ridiculous numbers to get games but then charge advertisers more plus make consumers pay more for specialized channels. If the President isn’t worth a million someone “playing” a sport certainly isn’t worth 50. For want of a better term, someone needs to investigate and expose this sham. — James W.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Mike Sielski, Josh Tolentino, Devin Jackson, Giana Han, Olivia Reiner, Alex Coffey, Keith Pompey, Jonathan Tannenwald, Meghann Morhardt, Ellen Dunkel, and Cayden Steele.