The 2025 NFL season was a disaster for the Philadelphia Eagles. Philly was surrounded by controversy throughout the entire season, culminating in an embarrassing playoff loss against San Francisco. The Eagles just got some great news about one of their veteran players just before the offseason starts heating up.
Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson will return for his 14th season in the NFL in 2026 per reporter Jeff McLane.
Johnson missed the final eight games of the 2025 season with a Lisfranc injury. However, he is working hard in rehab to regain full strength in his foot.
The 35-year-old right tackle has played in Philadelphia for his entire professional career. He's been a key piece of Philadelphia's offensive line during each of the franchise's Super Bowl trips over the past decade.
Eagles fans have been bracing for Johnson to announce his retirement from the NFL. Johnson will turn 36 years old this summer and his age, combined with his recent foot injury, made retirement seem possible.
Another factor was longtime offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland stepping away from the Eagles. McLane even argued earlier in February that Johnson could retire.
Now Eagles offensive coordinator Sean Mannion and new offensive line coach Chris Kuper should be relieved to know that Johnson is returning for another season.
But Philadelphia would still be wise to start thinking about a succession plan for Johnson at right tackle.
In fact, NFL insiders are already starting to mock offensive linemen to the Eagles ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft. The fact that Johnson will return in 2026 could feed that narrative, as a rookie could sit behind Johnson and develop during the 2026 season.
Johnson is currently under contract through 2027 and comes with a $20.30 million cap hit in 2026. But realistically he is a year-to-year proposition because of his age.
It will be interesting to see if Philadelphia drafts a successor to Johnson later this offseason.
