Over the next few weeks leading up to training camp, we’ll be counting down the top 25 most important Eagles for the 2024 season.
25. Brandon Graham
24. Nakobe Dean
23. Milton Williams
22. Jake Elliott
21. Nolan Smith
20. Cooper DeJean
19. Reed Blankenship
18. Tyler Steen
17. Devin White
16. Quinyon Mitchell
15. Jordan Davis
14. Landon Dickerson
13. C.J. Gardner-Johnson
12. Dallas Goedert
11. Josh Sweat
10. Bryce Huff
9. Cam Jurgens
8. Saquon Barkley
7. Darius Slay
6. DeVonta Smith
5. Jalen Carter
4. Jordan Mailata
3. A.J. Brown
2. Lane Johnson
In the locker room at Raymond James Stadium after the Eagles’ playoff loss to the Bucs, it already seemed likely that Jason Kelce had played in his final NFL game.
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So then some attention turned to Lane Johnson.
“I’m excited about where this team’s going to be at next year,” Johnson said on Jan. 15. “And I plan on finishing my career strong. I think I have a few good years left and I’m going to take it to the limit.”
He’s not done yet.
Johnson, 34, is back for Year 12 in 2024 and the Eagles are hoping he’s right that he has a few more good years left in him. Because he’s been such a key to their success over the last decade-plus.
NFL
Heck, how many right tackles have their own hype video?
And even though he’s in his mid-30s now, Johnson hasn’t slowed down. In fact, after a nagging ankle injury threatened to end his career a few years ago, Johnson has been back on the top of his game the last couple of years and has made the last two Pro Bowls. He’s still one of the best tackles in the NFL and he still has a strong case to be called the best right tackle in the game.
“You know, every year is a different challenge,” Johnson said this spring. “As guys get older, they lose athleticism, they lose flexibility. I'm trying not to lose any of that. I'm trying to look like I did when I was 27. And it's hard, but it's something that I work on every day.”
After the 2023 season, here’s the Eagles’ record with and without Johnson dating back to the 2016 season:
With Johnson: 71-37-1
Without Johnson: 11-22
It’s worth pointing out that the Eagles won their only game without Johnson in 2023 — a 37-34 overtime win over the Bills — but Johnson is still massively important to the Eagles’ success.
He and Jordan Mailata form one of the better tackle duos in the NFL. In an offseason ranking, PFF had Mailata as the No. 5 tackle in the NFL and Johnson at No. 6:
“While Johnson remains one of the best right tackles in the league, his 80.1 overall grade in 2023 was tied for his second-lowest mark since 2015. Still, he was the only right tackle to rank among the top 15 in both pass-blocking and run-blocking grades.”
Johnson is under contract through the 2026 season so we’ll see if that season marks the end of his career. Johnson didn’t make an All-Pro team or a Pro Bowl until the fifth year of his career but has since had two All-Pro seasons and five Pro Bowls.
Despite the early-career suspensions and fighting through several injuries, Johnson is still one of the best offensive tackles in the NFL and is making a Hall of Fame push late in his career. If Johnson really does have a few good years left, he might be able to get to Canton.
But even if he can’t, a strong finish to his career means that he could help the Eagles chase another Super Bowl.
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