Every so often one city gets a couple of their sports teams to peak at the same time. It can be exciting to watch as a city…just ask Boston fans.
Boston was clearly the city of champions over that last five or so year. The Patriots and Red Sox both won a title(s), while the Bruins and Celtics managed to make the playoffs.
But one city is emerging as the new “City of Champions”: Philadelphia.
The Eagles have been consistently good for the past couple of years now, and their coaching staff has settled in a bit. The Eagles are looking for another Super Bowl. That could easily be accomplished if Carson Wentz could stay healthy, the Eagles defense gets some upgrades (Darius Slay), and their younger players step up (Miles Sanders, Jalen Reagor, etc.). It helps to be in the worst division in football, and its safe to say that the Eagles will be a interesting team to watch down the road.
The 76ers are finalizing “The Process”. The rebuilding is starting to come around with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons finally getting some help that can stay for the long term. The Sixers turned around their franchise pretty quickly and have won 45+ games the past three years. The only thing that stands between the Sixers and the path to The Finals is Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks. Once the Sixers get a bit more playoff experience, this team will be a scary team to play.
The Phillies’ scenario is an interesting one. Most people (including me) think the Phillies have the roster to go all the way. Their pitching is alright, and their bat (when they get hot) are unstoppable. Signing Bryce Harper to a long term deal and signing Didi Gregorius, the Phillies have made it clear that they want to be a contending team for the next five or more years. This shorten season may be good for this team to get experience and finalize a roster to content for a World Series next year.
The Flyers are even more interesting. They were one of the worst teams in the NHL last year, and for the first half of this year, they looked like an avergae team. But, their start to 2020 was unstoppable. They climbed the standings and (if the season didn’t get paused) they may have had a chance at wining their division. The major part of the Flyers problem was goal-tending. Luckily, Carter Hart steped in and has show flashes of being an all-time great.
Least to say, Phildephia will be an entertaining sports city to watch. Whether all the right buttons are hit or the peak is now, Philly will be a place no team wants to play (especially since Philly fans are the worst!). With young stars like Joel Embiid, Bryce Harper, Carter Hart, and Carson Wentz, Philadelphia may need to make room for another trophy case.
Photo: NBC Sports Philadelphia
