Eagles news: Two starters don’t practice; SEPTA to offer free postgame rides; Kelce walks back WIP comments

In front of a crowd of a couple hundred Eagles fans at LOVE Park, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker immediately addressed her viral misspelling of the football team’s name.

“Your mayor done went out there and got in trouble, y’all,” she said to some laughs. Parker asked the crowd to help her show the rest of the nation that she was a good student, and to lead a hearty E-A-G-L-E-S chant as it’s meant to be done.

“The most important thing is that when we get together on Sunday, we are going to show those Washington Commanders who the Eagles are!” she said afterward. While thanking the municipal workers making sure the city is ready for game day, Parker joked that those workers would have to grease street poles this weekend too.

While rookie phenom Jayden Daniels is garnering most of the attention ahead of Sunday’s NFC championship game, Eagles fans should also keep a close watch on No. 17.

Nicknamed “Scary Terry,” veteran wide receiver Terry McLaurin earned his second Pro Bowl nod while having his best season as a pro. In the Commanders' two postseason games, he has 176 receiving yards and two scores.

McLaurin posted 1,096 yards this year, and his 13 touchdowns were second in the NFL and first in the NFC. The Eagles, led by rookie cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, held him to one catch for 10 yards in their first meeting, but couldn’t keep him out of the end zone in their second. And Mitchell's status is uncertain for Sunday, though he is expected to play.

The Washington Commanders plan to treat Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts like a running back and "hit him that way," according to Joe Whitt Jr., the team's defensive coordinator.

So will that impact how Nick Sirianni runs his quarterback?

“No," Sirianni told reporters Thursday. "We are already ultimately cautious with how we use him and how we think about each play, because we know how important it is to have him out there. But I wouldn’t expect anything else."

Joe Whitt Jr. did his best to put Jalen Hurts and Kellen Moore on notice Thursday: Use Hurts as a runner at your own risk.

Of course, Hurts’ left knee injury may not allow him to be as mobile Sunday, but Whitt, Washington’s defensive coordinator, was asked Thursday before Commanders practice about how he goes about preparing for teams with quarterbacks that, like Hurts, have the ability to run.

“We’ve had a number of these guys that we’ve had to prepare for,” Whitt said. “The one thing is, if he’s going to run the ball and the coordinator makes the decision for him to run the ball, we’re going to treat him like a running back, and we’re going to hit him that way.”

Jason Kelce expressed what can only be described as skeptical confidence in the Eagles ahead of the NFC championship game against the Washington Commanders.

Appearing on 94.1 WIP’s morning show Thursday, the former Eagles star turned ESPN analyst said he never expected the Commanders to make such a deep playoff run, and likes how the Birds stack up against their NFC East rival.

“I’ll be very candid. I think the Eagles are better at every position,” Kelce said. “I don’t know if there is one position — If you put the two rosters, the depth charts next to each other — that I would take the Washington player over the Eagle player.” 

While A.J. Brown watched film of the Eagles’ win over the Los Angeles Rams with his teammates earlier this week, the wintry mix occluding the footage served as a necessary reminder of what they contended with most of the evening.

The star wide receiver finished with just two catches for 14 yards and mishandled a couple of his targets, particularly as a few inches of snow descended onto Lincoln Financial Field. One of the biggest missed opportunities came in the second quarter, when Brown bobbled a possible touchdown pass near the sideline, securing the ball after he slid out of bounds.

“That damn snow,” Brown said, laughing. “I’m not the one to make excuses, but I hold onto that ball 99 times... In that moment, I slipped. I’m human, it is what it is, but I still have all the confidence in the world in myself and my guys, my teammates, my quarterback.”

Jalen Hurts is committed to doing what it takes to win, even if that means he must play through injury.

It wouldn’t be the first time.

The 26-year-old Eagles quarterback confirmed Wednesday he is on track to play in Sunday’s NFC championship game against the Washington Commanders despite suffering a knee injury in the divisional round against the Los Angeles Rams.

Rookie Jayden Daniels has had a remarkable season for the Washington Commanders, but history will be on the Eagles’ side Sunday. 

Daniels is just the sixth rookie quarterback to start a conference title game since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. He enters Sunday's game on a seven-game winning streak, including a come from behind win against the Eagles in Week 16.

Unfortunately for Daniels, his rookie predecessors fared poorly, going a combined 0-5 in championship games.

Three days. That's all that stands between the Eagles and a potential return to the Super Bowl.

The Eagles will host the Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders in the NFC championship game Sunday, with the winner punching their ticket to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX.

Over in the AFC, Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills will face off against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs for the fourth time in five seasons.