Still friends? | Sports Daily Newsletter
“It was love,” for A.J. Brown, despite the breakup.
We’re no stranger to dominant performances from A.J. Brown. But we’re used to him wearing Eagles green when he’s tearing up defenses.
Sure, the breakup, er, trade, was more than two months ago, but it still feels fresh when you see him wearing a navy blue New England Patriots jersey for the first time.
But Brown was upbeat about facing his former team in Wednesday’s joint practice, the first of two in Foxborough, Mass.
“I know I’m on an opposing team right now, but I still felt some love,” he said.
He may have felt love, but he didn’t go easy on the Eagles once practice began and hauled in all six of his targets.
And here’s everything else our Jeff McLane saw at the Eagles’ joint practice on Wednesday.
— Maria McIlwain, @phillysport, sports.daily@inquirer.com.
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The NFL is a different game from when Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio first started coaching it 40 years ago, but count this week in New England as his favorite of the preseason.
He wasn’t available for questions after Wednesday’s joint practice with the Patriots, but he surely learned plenty about his unit.
From signature one-liners to more pressing matters like Jonathan Greenard’s status for Week 1, here are the biggest storylines on the defensive side of the ball.
Speaking of Greenard, his availability remains one of the biggest concerns for an otherwise stout defense, David Murphy writes.
Next: Joint practices continue today in Foxborough, Mass.
The Phillies have added a veteran reinforcement to their shallow pitching depth.
The club signed Nestor Cortes to a major league deal Wednesday.
Cortes, a 31-year-old left-hander, last pitched on Sept. 3, 2025, before he was sidelined with a biceps tear that required surgery. Before the injury, he had a 6.29 ERA in eight starts with the Brewers and Padres. In his eight-year career, five of which Cortes spent with the Yankees, he has a 3.94 ERA with a 1.19 WHIP.
How will he fit with the Phillies? Don Mattingly couldn’t say much.
Aaron Nola pitched seven innings for just the second time this season in the Phillies’ 4-1 win over the Marlins to sweep the series. Luis Arraez hit his second homer since joining the team.
Next: After an off-day on Thursday, the Phillies will welcome the St. Louis Cardinals to Citizens Bank Park on Friday (6:40 p.m., NBCSP). Jesús Luzardo (11-5, 3.23 ERA) will start for the Phillies, while the Cardinals have not announced their starter yet.
On Aug. 3, the Phillies had a .305 on-base percentage, the third-worst in baseball. Between Aug. 3 and entering Wednesday, they were getting on base at a .367 clip, which was the best in baseball.
What happened between Aug. 3 and Aug. 4?
They traded for Arraez. You know, the guy who won batting titles in 2022, 2023, and 2024 and led the National League entering Wednesday at .317.
Sure, he’s not exactly lighting it up since coming over from the San Francisco Giants, but that’s OK. His presence and what he does for the players around him is what matters, Marcus Hayes writes.
A standing-room-only crowd at Subaru Park with thousands of pink-clad fans rooting for Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami against the Union were treated to an entertaining 2-2 tie. Messi scored for Miami, but the game ended with a brawl that saw teen phenom Cavan Sullivan ejected.
Next: The Union are heading down to the Lone Star State to face old friend Jim Curtin and his Austin FC squad on Saturday (8:30 p.m., Apple TV).
On this date
It’s not exactly a secret that the Phillies are the losingest franchise in MLB history, at least in terms of total losses. And the dog days of the 1961 season certainly didn’t help. Starting with a 4-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants on July 29, 1961, the Phils dropped 23 straight games, the longest regular-season losing streak since 1900, according to MLB.com. The misery didn’t end until the nightcap of a doubleheader on Aug. 20, 1961, when the Phillies beat the Milwaukee Braves, 7-4, at County Stadium in Milwaukee. The victory actually kick-started a four-game winning streak, but the Phillies finished the season 47-107-1.
Kinda puts this season’s sporadic scuffles in perspective, doesn’t it?
What you’re saying about college football
We asked: What college football team do you root for and why?
I root for Lehigh University. Why? It epitomizes what college football should be: a culture of high academic standards with a tradition of success. — Howard P.
Notre Dame — you know how we do. — D. Stone
Penn State all the way. First saw Lenny Moore on newsreels at the Saturday morning movies in Media PA in the early 1950s. We had no TV so I listened to the games on the radio. Have been a fan ever since and have met Joe Paterno and quite a few players including Capaletti etc and have a couple long time PS friends and a younger brother who graduated about the same time as Capaletti. — Everett S.
Temple Owls all the way! As loyal alumni, my time began toward the end of the Wayne Harden era. Loved the games at the Vet with West Virginia, Syracuse, Delaware, Pitt and Penn State. Attended the Garden State Bowl in frigid Giants Stadium. After graduation, the Bruce Arians era featured visits by Alabama and BYU. Following a number of forgettable years, Al Golden and Matt Rhule arrived and injected Temple Tuff on North Broad Street. Loved 2015 with the win over Penn State and the narrow defeat to Notre Dame. My Penn State daughters are still in denial! Will be back at the Linc Sept. 12 for the return of PSU! Go Owls! — Bob C.
i’ve been rooting for Penn State since the 60s ... they became my favorite team because of the Sunday Bulletin and what at the time they called the machine gun camera ... the Sunday Bulletin would show a series of photos of a play using the machine gun camera usually a running play featuring a back named Roger Kochman ... they would show a photo of the camera in the top corner of the first photo ... so i would wait every Sunday to be able to see the play they were featuring ... I imagine the machine gun camera was a early version of a motor drive — W. M.
I grew up in the 50s and 60s in Philly. My dad was a subway alumni of Notre Dame. It wasn’t hard back in those days to jump on the wagon. We identified as Catholic and Irish so that was good enough for me. Throughout the years my love of the Irish has never wavered. Good season or bad I watched or listened to each tussle. Even though I had never been to campus there was a mystique regarding her name. Eventually got to witness a few home games in the 80s and early 90s very few experiences like those. In the late nineties I went to work there for almost 20 years. Being on campus each day was joyful. Both my children are alumni and prospering, lived the full circle, Love thee Notre Dame! — Bill B.
We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from Olivia Reiner, Jeff McLane, Jeff Neiburg, David Murphy, Lochlahn March, Marcus, Hayes, and Jonathan Tannenwald.
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! Kerith will be back tomorrow to close out the week. — Maria