🦅 Super Birds | Morning Newsletter

Philly, what is there to say but “Go Birds”?

In their second Super Bowl matchup, the Philadelphia Eagles beat — absolutely trounced — the Kansas City Chiefs 40 to 22 after dominating the entire game. Call it revenge for their loss two years ago or call them “the best Philly team of all time.” Either way, it’s a great day to be an Eagles fan.

Read on for scenes from an electric-green Super Bowl Sunday, plus more news of the day. Let’s get into it.

— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)

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The Eagles are Super Bowl champions for the second time. One of the best parts of the win? The Chiefs never even stood a chance. Among the many headline-grabbing storylines found in Super Bowl 59:

🦅 Birds in flight: Quarterback Jalen Hurts nabbed the MVP title, while running back Saquon Barkley broke the single-season rushing record.

🦅 Bleeding green: Eagles fans hit the streets to celebrate even before the game ended, soon packing Broad Street and the intersection of Frankford and Cottman Avenues in Philadelphia, and Bourbon Street in New Orleans. “Finally we have a place in this whole country that is united,” one fan told The Inquirer as she stood outside the barriers at City Hall waving an Eagles flag.

🦅 All the stars: Tears and green confetti fell alongside the Chiefs’ would-be dynasty during an exciting broadcast. Kendrick Lamar put on a tight, riveting halftime show, complete with cameos from Serena Williams and Samuel L. Jackson. And the Empire State Building is shining green — again.

See the latest from The Inquirer’s Super Bowl 59 coverage.

Plus: When will the Eagles’ victory parade take place? The team hinted it could be Friday, but weather could affect the date.

🎤 Let’s pass the mic to City Hall reporter Sean Collins Walsh.

Philadelphia’s unusual tax structure will once again be a major subject of contention in City Hall this spring.

With a relatively light property tax burden and the highest wage tax of its kind in the nation, Philly’s peculiar approach to taxation has been criticized for years as a hindrance to job growth that is disproportionately paid for by poorer residents.

That decades-long debate was put on hold last year by Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, who in her first year in office left all tax rates unchanged. But it’s soon to be back on the agenda because the latest iteration of the Philadelphia Tax Reform Commission, which Council President Kenyatta Johnson convened shortly after taking office last year, is expected to produce a report by the end of the month.

Here’s what you need to know about the coming debate over taxes. — Sean Collins Walsh

Besides football, Eagles star receiver A.J. Brown pursued which field while at the University of Mississippi?

A) Entrepreneurship

B) Chemical engineering

C) Sports broadcasting

D) Marketing

Think you know? Check your answer.

📖 Reading: This Villanova professor’s book about how Black families searched for relatives sold during slavery.

🕯️ Planning: Date nights at these 11 romantic restaurants in the Philly suburbs.

🥣 Noting: Where Philly’s chefs shop for the best meat, produce, dishes, knives, and more.

🏛️ Considering: What the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign aid really means for the U.S.

Hint: CEO of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia

LORENE ALCHEMIC

Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Lynne Anderson, who solved Sunday’s anagram: Charles Santore. The celebrated Philly artist died before finishing his last project. Then his son picked up a brush to complete it, just as his father would’ve wanted.

📬 Think back to the night that changed your life that could only happen in Philly, a true example of the Philly spirit, the time you finally felt like you belonged in Philly if you’re not a lifer, something that made you fall in love with Philly all over again — or proud to be from here if you are. Then email it to us for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter.

This “only in Philly” story comes from reader Elsa Newman, who describes a lifelong fandom and a cosmic connection:

I haven’t lived in Philly for some time, but I was born in Center City (Jefferson Hospital), and my father, a third-generation Philadelphian, had four season tickets to the Eagles from before I was born.

Almost every Sunday while I was at Sunday school, the family was at Franklin Field, bringing stuffed sandwiches (arriving early for parking purposes) and a transistor radio in order to hear the full treatment of every play. The seats were the same every year and when I went, I was rather startled by how loud and specific our neighbors on the row got.

As years passed, Dad still attended the games and promised us a trip to New Orleans. When Dad became debilitated by heart disease, Mom had to hide his coat or keys to keep him from making a now-arduous trip on Sunday to South Philly.

Cut to Jan. 13, 2025 — the day after the Eagles beat the Rams — and I am at the corner of Varick and Houston in Manhattan waiting for an express bus. A tall, thin guy is crossing the street with a beanie that has a familiar eagle on it. Tentatively, I say, “Eagles?” and he sings out, “EAGLES.” We beam at each other and share a thumbs up. He disappears down the steps to the subway while I continue to wait. Thumbs up, Dad.

🦅 Thanks for starting your week with The Inquirer. Go Birds forever.

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