Franchise

THE NEW BROOM did not sweep clean. In this case, the wielder of the broom picked Michael Vick up off the floor, dusted him thoroughly, and set him carefully on the mantel. Chip Kelly held the news conference Monday he'd long promised, introducing his new staff, but the new Eagles coach managed to shove that news into the background, when a few hours before, the team announced it had reworked Vick's long-term contract into a 1-year deal worth as much as $10 million, including incentives.

IT TURNED OUT there were no franchise quarterbacks to be found in the 2007 NFL draft, but that didn't stop the Oakland Raiders from selecting JaMarcus Russell first overall, or the Browns from taking Brady Quinn 22nd. A franchise QB is the holy grail, the one thing everybody agrees a team needs to win the Super Bowl. That hasn't always been the case - Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson won Super Bowls for Baltimore and Tampa Bay a decade or so ago. But since then, it's been the guys with pedigrees on the podium, Pro Bowl performers who tended to have been drafted in the first round, with the exception of Tom Brady.

SUBWAY IS SUBPAR. That's at least according to a lawsuit filed Thursday by two New Jersey residents who say that the company's footlong sandwiches fail to measure up - literally. The New York Post reported Wednesday that the duo's attorney, Marlton-based Stephen DeNittis, tested 17 of the company's heralded hoagies and found that each one was less than a foot long. An earlier test conducted by Post reporters found that sandwiches purchased at Subway locations throughout New York City measured between 11 and 11 1/2inches.

Here is what the rest of the Eagles' week looks like: Tuesday At 10 a.m., facilities at the NovaCare Complex open, and players may report for physicals and voluntary strength and conditioning. Trading begins, and the Eagles may begin signing their own drafted rookies and any undrafted rookie. The Eagles may negotiate with but not sign or extend offer sheets to their own unrestricted free agents, restricted free agents, exclusive rights players and franchise players and other clubs' free agents and non-exclusive franchise players.

WELL, AT LEAST the Sixers have the consultant thing down solid. Between them, Rod Thorn, who is stepping down as team president to become a consultant, and Doug Collins, who quit as head coach on Thursday to become a team adviser, combine for about 100 years of NBA experience. As he goes about the business of trying again to repair a shattered franchise, Sixers owner Josh Harris will have little problem finding sources for advice. It's just a question of whether Thorn will be in Harris' right ear and Collins in the left or vice versa.

When Brian and Sharon Squires got into the coupon business more than 20 years ago, Internet shopping didn't exist; neither did TLC's Extreme Couponing and its homage to bargain hunting. Actually, coupons were a rather dull affair, mostly black-and-white clippings from the newspaper, or slightly snazzier versions crammed into envelopes that showed up in the mail. The Squireses - sweethearts since their days at Northeast High School and then at Temple University (Class of '79)

One glimpse of Matt McLaughlin's blue eyes and bulging biceps, and it's obvious why the 6-foot-2, 225-pound senior tight end at West Chester University considered himself a perfect fit for the job posted by College Hunks Hauling Junk . Owner Michael Ort thought so, too, making McLaughlin one of his first hires. But then he also hired Travis Weaver, who at 5-foot-8 and 125 pounds has never been likened to a hunk, the West Chester sophomore with boyish looks bravely admitted last week.

Former 76ers guard Allen Iverson is expected to be at Saturday's game at the Wells Fargo Center when the Sixers host the Charlotte Bobcats at 8 p.m. Iverson is scheduled to be introduced on the court before the game, and fans will receive an Iverson bobblehead. Iverson led the Sixers to the 2001 NBA Finals and is one of the franchise's all-time great players. He is the franchise leader in 40-point games (76) and three-pointers (885) and is second behind Hal Greer in points (19,931)

Saladworks, a Conshohocken restaurant franchise with about 100 locations in 12 states, said it signed a 15-store agreement with a franchisee in Singapore. The first location in Singapore is slated to open next year, with two more to follow in 2013, Saladworks said. Saladworks was founded 25 years ago in the Cherry Hill Mall. In early 2008, Commerce Bank founder Vernon W. Hill II became a minority investor.    - Harold Brubaker

Fourth in a series that looks at NL East teams. ONE OUT AWAY from playing in their first championship series in franchise history - since moving to Washington, that is - the Nationals were on the receiving end of a punch to the gut from the defending world champion St. Louis Cardinals. Just as Phillies fans cringe when they hear the names Cody Ross, Brian Wilson and Chris Carpenter, Nats fans don't want to remember Daniel Descalso, Pete Kozma or Carlos Beltran. After taking a six-run lead in the final game of the NL Division Series, the Nationals suffered an embarrassing loss on their home field to put an otherwise memorable 2012 season to rest.