While the Philadelphia Eagles’ special teams had their way with the Buccaneers, it wasn’t a good day for Lane Johnson. The offensive lineman left the game for the second straight week with an injury, according to a post on X by Mike Garafolo.
Johnson’s first injury came in the Eagles’ nail-biting 33-26 win over the Los Angeles Rams. He suffered a stinger after a Tush Push during the Eagles' first drive of the game, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
This week, Johnson practiced in full and appeared to be on a good track. Unfortunately, Johnson didn’t make it through the tough battle against the Buccaneers.
Eagles OT Lane Johnson struggling with injuries
Johnson, a six-time Pro Bowl performer, had played in 15, 16, and 15 games over the past three seasons. However, this year has been more of a struggle, at least in the early stages.
There’s no doubt about the value Johnson brings to the Eagles, according to The Athletic.
“When I think of ‘prototype,’ I think of something that can be re-created,” veteran offensive lineman Brett Toth said. “It’s pretty tough to re-create Lane Johnson.”
And his head coach, Nick Sirianni, agreed.
“Lane Johnson is, in my opinion, no question about it in my mind that he’s the best player I’ve ever been around,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “He is one of the best players in the NFL, and sometimes it’s hard to see that as an offensive lineman. It doesn’t show itself, but Lane gives us so much ability to do different things because of who he is as a football player.”
And he’s always in the right place, said teammate Matt Pryor.
“Not many times he’s going to be off balance, out of place, but when he is, he’s athletic enough to recover from it, which you don’t see often,” Pryor said. “Just from experience, I think he’s just at that pinnacle of (the position). He’s done it so great for so long that he’s kind of hit that point to where it’s just perfection.”
