Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson has announced his retirement from the NFL, ending a 14-season career with the club that included two Super Bowl wins, five AP All-Pro selections and six Pro Bowls.
The Eagles confirmed the news in an announcement on the club website on Tuesday afternoon US time (about 7am AEDT on Wednesday 7 October), with the decision coming in the middle of the 2026 season. Pro Football Rumors also reported that the 14th-year right tackle is retiring in-season.
Mid-season call after missing Week 4
Johnson started the first three games of the season and played every offensive snap, before missing Sunday’s 24-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams for what the club described as “personal reasons”.
He had already said before the season that 2026 was likely to be his last, citing family and life balance. “As you get older, things change in your life, priorities. Your children get older, your parents get older, it just puts things into perspective,” Johnson said at the time, according to the Eagles.
The club said Johnson had recovered from the foot injury that ended his 2025 season early, and that he ranked first among all NFL offensive tackles in both pass block grade and pass block win rate before Week 4.
Lurie backs Lane Johnson for the Hall of Fame
“Lane Johnson is an all-time Eagle and one of the best players ever to play his position in NFL history,” Eagles chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie said. Lurie added that “there is no doubt in my mind that one day he will be named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”
Johnson was the No. 4 pick in the 2013 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma and spent all 14 of his seasons in Philadelphia, winning three NFC Championships to go with his two Super Bowl rings.
Mailata loses his long-time line partner
For Australian fans, the news ends Johnson’s long stint alongside Australian left tackle Jordan Mailata on the Eagles’ offensive line. Johnson, Mailata and Jason Kelce recorded three holiday albums together that raised millions of dollars for local charities, and Johnson was the club’s 2023 nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.
What’s next for the Eagles
Rookie third-round pick Markel Bell started against the Rams and played the whole game, and the club said he is in line to start again when the Eagles (2-2) face the Jacksonville Jaguars in London on Sunday (US time).
“I think Markel did some really good things,” head coach Nick Sirianni said on Monday, before adding: “I thought he was solid.” For the latest on who is in and out across the league, see our NFL Injury Report Week 5.
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