John Kincade’s 3 Philly Sports Questions For August

Before we gear up for Philly Sports during the month of August at the Fanatic, we'll enjoy one of our favorite events of the year.

Monday, July 31 is our inaugural 97.5 The Fanatic Charity Golf Classic, which benefits the John Kincade Scholarship Fund of the the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). It’s a great cause and if you have the opportunity to make a contribution in person or online this Monday.

August is the precursor to September when we will see the Philadelphia Eagles start their drive to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.

The Philadelphia Phillies will need to pad their win total to lock themselves into a Wild Card spot so that they aren’t scrambling into the final series of the season just to back into the party. They also have the upcoming MLB Trade Deadline to determine their roster for the remainder of 2023.

Daryl Morey and the Philadelphia 76ers need to stabilize their roster and solve the James Harden problem. (Or do they?) Let’s examine a few of these nagging issues.

I’ve said it before, and it is such a bad way to be a fan. I’ll own it though. I’m the guy who wondered aloud the last two summers if Nick Sirianni was running training camp too much like Club Med.

The 2021 Eagles were on pace for a record in penalty yardage sitting at 2-5 in Sirianni's first season as a head coach. They turned it around, but it made me doubt the soft camp approach.

Last season, they raced out of the gates to an 8-0 record on their way to Super Bowl LVII completely healthy. It definitely worked that time. It contradicts what I do every summer. I hold my breath worrying about injuries, yet I want my team physically ready for the season.

I am tired of scrolling Twitter (or X?) fearing injuries. Please, just get to the season opener without a major mishap.

The Phillies will begin a 17-game stretch on July 28 that will most likely determine if September is going to be a comfortable playoff push or one that is more desperate.

A trip to Pittsburgh comes before a critical four-game series against the Miami Marlins. The Phillies are already 2-4 against the Marlins this season. That has to change as they are a direct competitor for one of the three Wild Card spots.

They then return for a 10-game homestand against the Royals, Nationals, and Twins homestand. If the Phillies don’t start showing us they can dominate some inferior opponents, it will be another white-knuckle September.

Some fans seem to believe the Phillies can go 4-8 in their final 12 games again and grab the third Wild Card spot on their way to the World Series. They must believe in unicorns too if they think that will happen smoothly again.

I didn’t believe that Harden was a winner when they traded for him, but I thought it was an acceptable move considering Ben Simmons needed to go. Now, it’s Harden that needs to go.

He thought he was going to be a sought-after free agent. His camp floated the Houston Rockets return rumor on Christmas Day. I was done with him before we sat down to dinner that night. He collapsed again under the Game 6 and 7 playoff pressure to confirm my assessment.

I’m thrilled Daryl Morey didn’t just give him pay him what he wants. Now, it’s up to "The Slippery Eel" to find a deal that works. Get him out of here and find role players that Nick Nurse can work with. I’ll take anything but a disgruntled Harden devising his third exit drama plan to destroy another team's energy.

Watch The John Kincade Show live on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page on weekday mornings from 6am-10am.

The Philadelphia Eagles are almost ready to begin training camp at the Nova Care Complex.

The city of Philadelphia has the luxury of a baseball team in contention for the World Series once again in 2023. Are the Phillies actually overshadowing the Eagles less than half a year after an appearance in Super Bowl LVII though?

The offseason buzz hasn’t been as loud as in past years. Howie Roseman focused mostly on retaining key players that helped the Eagles win the NFC Championship Game in January.

The biggest splashes came at the NFL Draft. The Eagles entered the spotlight by adding a trio of Georgia Bulldogs in Jalen Carter, Nolan Smith, and Kelee Ringo.

It was an offseason without too many big-name free agents or blockbuster trades. However, the most passionate fan base in the NFL always has the hunger to watch the most prominent franchise in town. 

Training camp battles will always draw attention. The competition for both starting safety positions and the right guard spot in between franchise legends Lane Johnson and Jason Kelce will be the most impactful.

Nick Sirianni and the coaching staff will have their eyes on Cam Jurgens vs. Tyler Steen, Sydney Brown vs. Terrell Edmunds vs. (Ed) Reed Blankenship, and even a potential... punter battle.

However, the real draw of training camp and the NFL preseason is the lure of a looming season. As much as football fans like to write off the storylines, they’ll still slurp them up as quickly as an ice-cold beer at a tailgate before the home opener.

Remember the dates when you’ll overreact to every detail that comes out of daily practices in anticipation of the defense of an NFC Championship and a quest to avenge the sour taste of a Super Bowl loss against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The days at Lehigh University are over. An excellent tradition that included several other stops throughout franchise history ended in 2013.

Modern accommodations at the Nova Care Complex provide a sensible option for professional athletes, but some fans do miss the excitement of a late-summer trip to Eagles training camp (especially the ones who don't have the opportunity to see regular-season games in an era when tickets are in such high demand).

However, you'll see the practice notes, injury updates, and press conference takeaways from your favorite Eagles beat reporters beginning on Tuesday, July 25.

Philadelphia fans still have one opportunity to watch the team live during training camp.

Eagles Training Camp Public Practice presented by Independence Blue Cross will take place at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday, August 6 at 7 pm.

Tickets are $10, and proceeds benefit the Eagles Autism Foundation.

Before you say that open practice has never mattered, remember that Nelson Agholor was public enemy number one entering the 2017 season. The roaring crowd at the Linc cheered Agholor on August 14, 2017, and the confidence he built as a preseason star actually mattered.

Agholor became a dangerous game-breaker throughout one of the most memorable seasons in Philadelphia sports history.

The Eagles will head south on I-95 for the preseason opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday, August 12.

Most Eagles fans have two immediate reactions when they hear Eagles-Ravens preseason.

The first: the cringy moment when the organization canceled a game because of sloppy field conditions at Veterans Stadium. The second: when the era of Terrell Owens in midnight green started with an 81-yard bomb from Donovan McNabb.

The Eagles will hold joint practices with the Cleveland Browns the week leading up to Philadelphia's second preseason game.

The teams have not announced the official dates. Whatever you do, please don't buy into the notion of "winning" a joint practice.

The Eagles will take the field at the Linc in front of the home crowd against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday, August 17.

It's not clear yet which starters will dress. It could be the first chance that fans have to watch (backup) Marcus Mariota after the Eagles have finally...done the deal.

Mariota provides a serviceable option behind Jalen Hurts, but his legacy in franchise history probably won't change.

The NFL preseason finale isn't the most dazzling football you'll ever watch. 

However, Eagles fans can still point to one of the most impactful final roster decisions in franchise history as a reason why the game can actually matter.

Corey Clement snuck onto the 2017 roster and later went for 100 yards in Super Bowl LII.

The Birds wrap up the preseason at home on Thursday, August 24 against the Indianapolis Colts at 8 pm.

NFL teams trim the rosters from 90 to 53 on August 29.

The announced rosters, however, don't always last until opening day. Surprise cuts frequently find ways onto other rosters in the final days of August or early September.

Why has Hard Knocks taken so long to get off the ground?

We finally found out that the New York Jets will be the featured team. As Adam Schefter told The John Kincade Show last week, HBO usually has boots on the ground at team facilities weeks before training camp.

At some point, you'll see what Pat Egan considers the one thing "scratching the football itch that's missing in our lives" late in the summer. Hard Knocks has aired on Tuesday nights in most past seasons.

This day can't come soon enough.

You can wash the hype away on Sunday, September 10 when the Eagles visit Foxborough to face the New England Patriots.

Nothing would wash away the anxiety of preseason like spoiling a ceremony honoring Tom Brady's jersey retirement.

Watch The John Kincade Show streaming live on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page on weekday mornings from 6am-10am.