Hanging It Up

After a decorated career that spanned 14 seasons, Eagles five-time All-Pro right tackle and franchise icon Lane Johnson is calling it a career.

GETTY IMAGES: Future Hall of Fame Eagles OT Lane Johnson retires after 14 seasons.

Johnson, 36, announced his retirement Tuesday afternoon via a social media post, which reads:

“Philadelphia, you truly are the city of Brotherly Love. The best fans and the most prideful city in the entire world.

I have given it my all for 14 years; season after season pushing my body to the max and tirelessly working my craft to not only live up to the legacy of the guys that came before me, but to set a new standard of success for the best franchise in all of sports.

I deeply wanted to gut it out for one more year; to take the field with my brothers for one last season. But after a lot of reflection, I’ve realized that my personal and family priorities in my life have changed. Right now, it is critical that I focus on my mental health. I owe it to my teammates, coaches, the organization and the fans to have my head and heart 100 percent in the game. And right now my heart is telling me it’s time to say goodbye to football.

At this time, I have made the incredibly difficult decision to retire from the National Football League.

Riding up Broad Street as a World Champion, not once, but twice, and seeing the city in all its glory was the ultimate privilege; I’ll never forget it.

Thank you to Jeffrey Lurie and the entire Eagles organization for taking a chance on a kid from small-town East Texas, and changing my life forever. And thank you to the many coaches and teammates I’ve had the honor of working with and playing alongside for the past 14 years; ya’ll have become lifelong friends and the brothers that I never had.

Right now, what’s most important to me is continuing to focus on my mental health and spending more time with my kids and family.

But Philadelphia will always be home, and I will forever be an Eagle.

“Thank you for the love and enduring support.”

In the hours leading up to the Eagles’ Week 4 matchup, Johnson was suddenly listed as questionable with a personal designation and his name subsequently surfaced among the group of the gameday inactives.

Two days later, Johnson decided on retirement.

The future Hall of Fame right tackle, returning from a Lisfranc sprain in his right foot that limited Johnson to 10 starts last season, started at right tackle for the first three weeks, totaling 181 offensive snaps. In his 14th season, the veteran tackle lived up to his storied resume, showcasing athleticism and sustained dominance. Even in the midst of a schematic change, Johnson, to no surprise, was a pillar of stability.

Johnson missed the first four training camp practices, later revealing he was “handling some personal stuff” during his absence. On August 8, Johnson spoke after a training camp practice at the Jefferson Health Training Complex. In response to a question, Johnson offered that the 2026 season was “probably” going to be his last.

“As you get older, things change in your life,” Johnson said on Aug. 8. “Priorities. Your children get older, parents get older. And so, just puts things into perspective. It’s looking like, potentially, this is probably going to be my last year. Just because I am getting to that point of those priorities away from football are starting to merge. Not that I don’t enjoy – I love everything about this game, and preparing for it. But that’s kind of where I’m at in my career.”

The final ride might’ve lasted all of three games, but Johnson irrefutably leaves the game better than he found it. At the top of his profession.

A five-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler, Johnson will forever be remembered as one of the franchise’s most defining players, one who perfectly captured the patented Philadelphia toughness and grit, laying it all on the line for 14 seasons. For over a decade, there was no one who did it better than Johnson at his position of trade, the devotion to his craft a critical component to fueling his longevity.

Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni, following the team’s Week 3 win over the Rams last season, referred to Johnson as the “best player I‘ve ever been around” and “one of the best players in the NFL.”

During the team’s season-ending press conference in January, general manager Howie Roseman referred to Johnson as a “Hall of Fame player who’s been a huge, huge part of any of our success that we’ve had.”

But on this day, perhaps it was Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, in a team-issued post on social media, who put it best:

“Lane Johnson is an all-time Eagle and one of the best players to play his position in NFL history. Lane was a major contributor to our team success for 14 seasons. Helping to bring two Super Bowl Championships and many other memorable moments to the organization and the city of Philadelphia. 

Lane excelled under multiple coaching staffs, maintaining an elite level of play throughout his entire career. His combination of talent, strength, athleticism, and intelligence made him a truly unique player in this league, and there is no doubt in my mind that one day he will be named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Beyond his on-field accomplishments Lane has done a tremendous amount to give back to the community through his numerous charitable endeavors. The courage he has shown using his own personal experiences to advocate for Mental Health Awareness has undoubtedly saved lives.

“We appreciate everything Lane has contributed to our organization, and we wish him and his family nothing but the best.”

— Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is the Eagles beat reporter for InsideTheBirds.com.