- 10 hours ago
Jack Fritz from 94.1 WIP joins The Kevin Sheehan Show to give a breakdown of the current state of the Philadelphia Eagles going into the week 8 matchup vs the Commanders. Fritz details Philadelphia’s post-Jalen Hurts spiral, the expected absences of Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith, Tanner McKee’s glaring limitations under center, the collapse of Vic Fangio’s defense, and why Washington enters "Code Red #2" with a golden opportunity to bury their division rival and climb back into the playoff hunt.
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00:00Sunday night, not in Philly, but in Landover. Lovely Landover.
00:068.15 for Washington and Philadelphia, part two in 2025.
00:11Six, excuse me. They opened up against each other at the link.
00:1524-22 was the final. The Eagles have gone in one direction,
00:18and Washington's continued in kind of the same direction.
00:22I was reading, I think this morning, Max, that this is like one of the worst
00:26week seven or later record matchups for Sunday night football ever.
00:33That's bad.
00:34I do remember a year, 2001, the Marty Schottenheimer year.
00:37Washington was 0-4. Cowboys were 0-4 Monday night football.
00:41And it turned out to be the last loss Washington went on to win eight of its final 11.
00:46Who knows? Maybe it's a turning point for one of these two teams.
00:49Jack Fritz is an afternoon host on the legendary WIP radio
00:56in Philadelphia. He joins us right now. You can follow Jack on X at Jack Fritz, W-I-P.
01:03So, I mean, from a distance, you know, two and a half hours southwest,
01:09it looks to me like Monday night may have been it,
01:14that Philly's now about to go into one of those seasons that injuries cause a lot
01:19where it just turns south and it doesn't recover.
01:24How do you guys view it from there?
01:27Yeah, it felt like that was their last stand, like their last chance to kind of get back
01:32into the race and see if they can make something of the season.
01:36And what was so shocking, I think the thing that, you know, kind of leaves the city feeling
01:40that the standing eight count is, I mean, the defense was just embarrassing.
01:45I mean, that's a home game, Sunday night football, Jeff Lurie's going into the Eagles Hall of Fame.
01:52There's not a game where you can get up and say, we're not going to allow a team to score
01:5617 points on us.
01:57It's this game, and especially when you look at the difference between, you know, the offense,
02:02which is incredibly depleted, and, you know, Saquon Barkley's out there probably risking his season,
02:09you know, coming back early from his hamstring injury,
02:11and, you know, laying his body on the line to try to will this team to a victory.
02:17You have a defense that goes out and doesn't even get off the bus.
02:22It was embarrassing, and I don't think the city, just feeling the energy around here,
02:28I don't think the city's recovered yet.
02:30Yeah, it's really, it's one of the things that was startling to me watching it Monday night, too,
02:36because I've always been just a big, big Fangio fan and a big fan of the talent on that defense,
02:41and they had played well, right, in London against Jacksonville,
02:44defensively against Carolina, the Rams game.
02:47They held them, you know, until the fourth quarter to, you know, 14 points or whatever it was.
02:52So it had played well recently, even with the offensive woes.
02:57So what do you attribute it to?
02:59Yeah, I mean, I would say these last two weeks, the Panthers, I didn't think that they were great.
03:04Before that, you could attribute it to being mostly the offense's fault while the defense was playing bad
03:11because the offense was not sustaining drives.
03:13They weren't, you know, giving the defense a chance to kind of catch their breath a little bit.
03:17I think that's why they lost that Rams game.
03:20But at the same time, you know, you watch them all year.
03:23They have a lot of yards.
03:26The teams have been able to run on them more than I expected.
03:29And, you know, this is a team that heading into the year,
03:31you felt like it was going to be a top five defensive unit, and they're not even close.
03:36I mean, the defense isn't that hurt.
03:38I mean, they're not dealing with the same injuries that the offense is kind of having.
03:43I don't know what's going on over there.
03:45I think my biggest fear, and I think the thing that's kind of hitting Eagle fans
03:48and that part of your gut that you don't want to talk about,
03:51is a lot of these guys got paid.
03:54And that hunger, after achieving the ultimate goal, which is winning the Super Bowl,
03:58like, who knows if that hunger is still there.
04:02Yeah, I think that just, again, like, from our standpoint,
04:06like, to consider that defense heading in the wrong direction could be premature
04:11because, like you said, it's healthy, it's talented, it's well coached.
04:15We know that.
04:16And it could step up and change a game or certainly keep a game close.
04:21Offensively, it appears to be a mess.
04:24Right now, what's your guess on Devontae Smith and Barkley for Sunday night?
04:29I would expect them both to be out.
04:31I think Saquon really gunned to play Sunday night because he felt like it was
04:36their last stand in a way.
04:39But given that he re-aggravated his hamstring the second run of the game
04:43and then that turned into a back injury, and now that they're 2-5,
04:47they have a 4% chance of making the playoffs or whatever,
04:50I think what you're going to start seeing is guys with minor injuries
04:54or maybe minor injuries starting to take themselves out of games
05:00and try to execute a mini-tank here.
05:04I don't think that they need to rush any of these guys back on the field
05:08to try to kind of salvage the season.
05:10The Eagles are, I think, a very smart organization.
05:13I think they're a pretty self-reflective organization.
05:16And it feels like that they have, even the way Sirianni was talking
05:20after they lost on Monday night, he's blowing bubbles at the podium.
05:24It felt a little nonchalant-y.
05:26He said a lot of things, but the way he was kind of up there was like,
05:30eh, it's kind of one of those years.
05:31I don't think that they want to risk any kind of long-term health situations here
05:36for any of these guys, especially their core guys.
05:39Is Howie Roseman going to be a seller in a week and a half?
05:43I think he's going to be a mild seller.
05:45I don't think Saquon gets traded.
05:47It's a $27 million debt gap hit, unless the team blows you away,
05:52like a three or a two maybe.
05:55But I don't think he's going into the trade deadline looking to trade him.
05:59Like Zach Vaughn, I would be shocked if he traded Zach Vaughn.
06:02He's so good, right, Jack?
06:04I mean, he is just such a great football player.
06:07He's awesome out of nowhere.
06:09They signed him as a special teamer.
06:10And Vic Fangio is like, nah, you're going to be a linebacker.
06:14Yeah.
06:16So like Rick Wallen, I could see getting traded.
06:18Dallas Goddard, he's on an expiring deal.
06:20They've tried to trade him the last couple of years.
06:23So I think it would be a mild sell-off,
06:24but I don't think a Saquon or a Zach Vaughn or any of those guys would go.
06:29So I remember at one point maybe last year there was discussion about,
06:34you know, Tanner McKee can really do it.
06:37The organization is super optimistic about his future.
06:41They think he could start for teams in this league.
06:44You know, he got an opportunity at the end of last year, if you recall,
06:47in the season finale to start against Washington.
06:49And now he's had, what, back-to-back games.
06:52So what is the view right now of Tanner McKee?
06:56Can he do it or not?
06:57Nah, no shot.
06:58I mean, I think there was some hope that maybe he had a little foals to him.
07:03You know, big, goofy, lanky, you know, quarterback that maybe can get hot.
07:08But he's a little too up and down for me.
07:12Like, he'll have moments where he's accurate, but overall not accurate enough.
07:16And it does not look like – I'm a little surprised for a guy in his fourth year.
07:20It hasn't looked like the game has totally slowed down for him.
07:23Like, he lets the game speed up on him a little bit.
07:25But, so, yeah, the Eagles were absurdly high on Tanner McKee the last couple years
07:30to an annoying extent.
07:31I will say, though, they might have lost faith because, I mean, Andy Dalton,
07:36in year 25 of him being in the league, did beat him out for the backup quarterback job
07:41before they cut Andy Dalton after one pass in the Bears game.
07:45So –
07:46Right, the goal line play, right?
07:48The goal line play.
07:50Yeah.
07:51When Hurts had to come out when he probably shouldn't have had to come out.
07:55Yes.
07:56Yes.
07:56And if you're Andy Dalton, you're like, screw you guys.
07:59Like, what are you cutting me for?
08:00Because the Eagles tried to bring him back, and he said, no, I'm going to sign in Atlanta.
08:06But, yeah, I think that they've stouted him a little bit.
08:09They did bring in Joe Milton, the old Tennessee quarterback,
08:12and they signed him off the Dallas practice squad.
08:16He's someone who has, obviously, a bazooka for a right arm,
08:18but has never been able to totally put it together.
08:21They drafted a kid in the fourth round last year, Cole Payton, out of North Dakota State.
08:25He kind of reminds me of Taysom Hill, though.
08:27I don't know how his quarterbacking is, but he's a super, super good athlete.
08:31So, maybe the season goes on, and Tanner proves that he can't do it.
08:34They can go somewhere else.
08:36But, yeah, Tanner has been certainly not what I think the Eagles thought they were getting.
08:40Talking to Jack Fritz from WIP Radio in Philadelphia.
08:45So, what's your view of the division?
08:47I'm assuming you think the Eagles are done at this point.
08:51If so, how do you view the other three teams?
08:54What does this look like at the end of the year?
08:58Well, I like what Harbaugh is doing, just, like, culture-wise,
09:01cutting guys, holding players accountable.
09:04And it seems like they might have found something in J.J. McCarthy.
09:07I'm actually surprised the Eagles didn't trade for J.J. McCarthy.
09:09I know that you can't expect Jalen to get hurt, but they are supposedly a quarterback factory.
09:14And for a fifth-round pick, when you don't really have a great option in the key or Payton,
09:18it didn't seem like a terrible idea to trade for J.J. McCarthy.
09:22But I do like what Harbaugh is doing up there from the standpoint of, you know,
09:26kind of building his culture and building his program.
09:30So, if I had to bet, I think they win the division.
09:33The Cowboys, you can't totally give up on because of the offense,
09:35but also they've been passed the eye test.
09:37And when I have watched Washington this year, or at least the last couple games,
09:41it does seem like Jaden Daniels is starting to figure it out a little bit.
09:44I thought he was great against the Niners.
09:46So, and I'm a Jaden Daniels fan.
09:48Like, I hope that he's good.
09:50I think he's too talented not to be good,
09:53and the injuries have been really unfortunate for him.
09:54So, and I think the Eagles are about to go into a mini tank.
09:58I don't think they're going to sell off all their pieces,
10:00but I think there's going to be guys that won't play that could maybe go up there
10:03competing for a division race.
10:05But I think the Eagles now are more focused on getting a top ten pick
10:09than they are competing for this division.
10:12So, tell me and my listeners what the Jalen Hurts situation is right now.
10:19And I'm specifically talking about, you know,
10:22how it's viewed from Philadelphia in the way that it was handled.
10:26Is it controversial? Is it a topic?
10:29Or is there a feeling that everything was handled appropriately
10:33from a medical standpoint?
10:35Yeah, I think there are Eagles fans that are upset with how it's handled.
10:41But I think the thing that sunk the whole Jalen discourse
10:44is the initial reporting of the whole thing,
10:47where the first report was he was up for 36 hours and they made him play.
10:50And it's like, that's been refuted. That didn't happen.
10:54And I think that people just were so obsessed with that,
10:57that they think that the Eagles actually did that.
11:01So, like, the tough part is that none of us are medical experts.
11:07You know, it seems like the Eagles,
11:09like the way that we are kind of handling it,
11:11it does seem like the Eagles did everything right here.
11:13And that it's just like an unfortunate thing that happened
11:16after they got back, was that the clot moved.
11:21But there is a certain faction of the fan base
11:26that is mad at the organization
11:29and that they think that they put Jalen in a risky situation.
11:36And I think it's causing a little bit of a rift in the fan base.
11:41I mean, Jeff Lurie went into the Eagles All-Fame.
11:44He's the best owner in the history of the franchise.
11:46The Eagles matter more here than any other team.
11:48And it was a subdued crowd reaction to him
11:52because there is people that are frustrated with the Jalen situation
11:57and thinking the Eagles misshandle it.
11:59Now, what I think the Eagles did misshandle
12:01is having Nick Sirianni out there
12:03who struggles to answer questions about football,
12:06having to answer questions about a blood clot situation.
12:09I don't think that was the cleanest of operations.
12:12But ultimately, you know, that's just a coach giving a press conference.
12:18So what do you think?
12:20Is Jalen Hurts the future quarterback?
12:22And what happens with Nick Sirianni when the season ends,
12:25if it ends 5-12 or 6-11 or something like that?
12:30Well, I hope they move on from Nick.
12:33I don't think they will move on from Nick
12:35because I think that they are more interested in having someone
12:38who, you know, is essentially a puppet.
12:41I think that they like having someone that they can control,
12:44that they can hire coordinators for,
12:46and he just goes out and, you know, does his Nick thing.
12:50And to his credit, the coach has been pretty good the last couple of years.
12:53Obviously, he won the Super Bowl,
12:55but I've always kind of thought he's a coach that's along for the ride
12:58rather than making a real difference.
13:00And I think that the people that overrate his winning percentage or whatever
13:05struggle to separate great coach from great organization.
13:09And I think that this is more of an example of great organization
13:12rather than a great coach.
13:14I would love to have this idea that they were going to hire some strong-willed head coach,
13:20but even if they fire a Nick, they're just going to try to hire another Nick.
13:23So I guess I might as well keep the guy that I have here.
13:27Jalen's a tough one.
13:28I thought this was a make-or-break type year for him,
13:31but obviously it's so tough to evaluate now.
13:34And the reality is that we have no idea if he's going to play football again.
13:38So I think he's the future.
13:40I expect him to be the future.
13:42I don't know how long-term it is.
13:44I think he's the quarterback next year.
13:46But obviously, until we have any kind of clarification
13:50or more information about his clock situation, we have no idea.
13:54Was the fit going to be a good one with Sean Mannion in him or not?
14:00I mean, I never thought so.
14:02I mean, it seemed like it was going to be way different than what Jalen's ever done.
14:05He doesn't throw across the middle of the field.
14:06He doesn't go under center.
14:08And, you know, the offense was terrible while he was the quarterback,
14:12and it's continued under Tanner McKee.
14:14So it felt like the Eagles were more married to the scheme than they were the player.
14:20And so far, like, neither has worked.
14:22The scheme hasn't been great, and it hasn't gotten the most out of the player.
14:26So I never thought it was a great marriage if, like, the Eagles just wanted that
14:30McVay-Shanahan scheme in here, and it didn't matter who the quarterback was.
14:34But it does seem like Sean Mannion is struggling to implement it,
14:38given that he has never done it.
14:40He is a quarterback coach who has been coaching for two years.
14:44So it was a lofty and big ask.
14:48But I certainly, heading into the year,
14:50I did not feel like it was something that was going to work immediately.
14:54All right.
14:54Total change of subject.
14:57The Sixers, I would imagine, are a big topic right now in Philadelphia.
15:02From afar, it's fun to watch them play.
15:07What's the reputation of Josh Harris in Philadelphia?
15:12Do Philadelphia fans, do Sixer fans like Josh Harris or not?
15:17No.
15:17No one likes Josh Harris.
15:20We are – now, it's funny because Jeff Lurie's from Boston,
15:23but he's been here so long and he's done a lot of good here that it's made up for it.
15:29But I think that we view Josh Harris as someone who is not invested in the city
15:34that you want the owner of one of your sports teams to be invested into the city.
15:40We feel like he –
16:04It's probably wrong, but it's also like just knowing the DNA of the city and who we are.
16:11The fact that our owner owns one of our biggest rivals and the most important sport in the city
16:16and owns another rival of another important team in the city,
16:21I think that there is a – they don't feel like the Philadelphia 76ers.
16:26They feel like the Sixers.
16:28Yeah, I think I get that.
16:30I think I – like if – I'm just sitting here trying to put the shoe on the other foot.
16:34If my – if my basketball team owner was also the owner of the Cowboys or the Eagles or the
16:42Giants,
16:43I think I would feel that way.
16:44Yes.
16:45Yeah.
16:46Especially in a city like this that actually, like, you know,
16:50we're pretty territorial by our sports teams.
16:53Yeah.
16:53Thanks, Jack.
16:55Really enjoyed it.
16:56Appreciate it.
16:57Of course.
16:58Anytime.
16:58Yep.
16:59Jack Fritz from WIP Radio hosts Afternoons on WIP.