December 27, 2024
Colleen Claggett/for PhillyVoice
Saquon Barkley #26 of the Philadelphia Eagles carries the ball during a NFL football game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on December 15, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Was it the best year in Philly sports?
Definitely not.
In the calendar year of 2024, the Eagles completed their futile collapse in last season's postseason, the Flyers fell apart before they could make an unexpected playoff run, the Sixers faltered once again in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, and the Phillies set several franchise records before losing in the NLDS to the hated Mets.
Great memories, right?
The Eagles definitely changed the narrative on the year this fall, and they should leave fans with a good taste as the new year arrives. They are likely to win the NFC East and the NFC's second seed with some Super Bowl buzz ahead of 2025.
Here's a look at the top 10 Philly Sports stories from a very Philly year in Philly sports:
Everything about the Eagles' acquisition of Barkley and his performance in Philadelphia has been a dream come true. From making Giants fans miserable, to setting the Eagles' single-season rushing record, to nearly setting the NFL's single-game yardage record and to, of course, a franchise-best streak of 10 wins in a row.
It's unlikely Barkley will be able to surpass Eric Dickerson's rushing mark, but coming this close to 2,000 yards is a special season. No one will ever forget seeing him shred defenses, or re-inventing the hurdle.
The Phillies broke a 12-year streak when they won the NL East this past September and the club would go on to win 95 games, the second most in the NL. We'll revisit the Phillies 2024 regular season a few times on this list, but obviously their shocking loss to the Mets in the NLDS makes all of the good times during a special summer a little less special.
During their regular season campaign, they dominated at home and posted a top-five offense and pitching staff.
Fans who were calling for Nick Sirianni's head during the offseason and after a mediocre 2-2 start to the Eagles' 2024 season changed their tune as the Birds not only fired off 10 consecutive wins. The team did it with the best defense in the entire NFL during that stretch. Philly is a town that appreciates defense, perhaps more than others, and Vic Fangio's unit accomplished the following during the win streak:
• Allowed an NFL-lowest 214.5 yards per game
• Secondary permitted only 141.0 passing yards per game
• Held opponents 73.5 rushing yards per game
• Gave up just 11.0 points per game
In addition to adding Barkley, amid a climate where most NFL experts were predicting the demise of the free agent running back, Howie Roseman and the Eagles' front office found a bunch of gems, including linebacker Zack Baun who could wind up being an All-Pro this year.
In the draft, once again Roseman's haul was the envy of the league when he nabbed the top two cornerbacks in the class Quinion Mitchell and Cooper DeJean. The transformation of the secondary continued with C.J. Gardner-Johnson returning. For results of that new look secondary, see above.
In the heart of the 2024 regular season, the Phillies went 29-6 over a 35-game stretch from April 14 to May 23, including 19-4 in May. It was arguably the one of the five single-month stretches in MLB history:
• New York Giants, June 1916: 27-1 (.964 win %)
• Cleveland Indians, September 1954: 24-2 (.923)
• Oakland Athletics, June 2022: 23-4 (.852)
• Philadelphia Phillies, May 2024: 19-4 (.826)
• Seattle Mariners, May 2001: 20-5 (.800)
One more visit to the Phils, as their incredible first half of the season led to the team having a team-record (and MLB-tying record) eight All-Stars in July of 2024. Prior to the last season Philly never had more than five.
• Bryce Harper
• Alec Bohm
• Trea Turner
• Zack Wheeler
• Ranger Suárez
• Cristopher Sánchez
• Jeff Hoffman
• Matt Strahm
After taking impressive steps in each of his first three NBA seasons, Maxey emerged as a true star in 2023-24, as he posted career-best stats in points per game, assists, rebounds, steals, blocks and minutes per game. He earned his first career All-Star selection alongside Joel Embiid and then earned Most Improved Player honors at season's end.
His highlight reel:
The youthful Flyers made a splash last season and finished just four points shy of making it into the postseason. They actually held the last Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference up until April 5 — and if the NHL season ended after 77 games they'd have been dancing in the tournament. But John Tortorella couldn't get his inexperienced team to keep it together later into the spring and the season ended as expected.
Flyers fans wouldn't be down for long, as the offseason surprisingly welcomed 2023 first round pick, Russian sensation Matvei Michkov to the United States and onto the Flyers' active roster. And while there were a few hiccups, the rookie has not disappointed so far. Philly is a playoff contender, and it is in large part due to the offensive shot in the arm from the quick fan favorite winger:
Last spring the Sixers lost, again, in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, preserving a drought since Allen Iverson and the 2001 team made it to the NBA Finals. It's been 23 years since they made it further than Round 2.
They came close in April, in one of the most memorable series losses in recent memory. Every single game was a total adventure.
• Game 1, 104-101 Knicks: Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey combine for 62 points
• Game 2, 104-101 Knicks: NY overcomes a five-point deficit in the final 30 seconds.
• Game 3, 125-114 Sixers: Embiid nets a playoff career-high 50 points
• Game 4, 97-92 Knicks: Jalen Brunson scores 47 points
• Game 5, 112-106 Sixers (OT): Maxey scores 46 points and makes a game-tying three to force overtime
• Game 6, 118-115 Knicks: Brunson has 41 points and 12 assists
The bad times continued as Embiid entered 2024 with a bevy of injury issues, and the goodwill the team earned from adding Paul George over the summer was decimated amid an atrocious 2-12 start.
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