Lane Johnson feels he's "getting close" to his peak as a player
The offensive line has been a big part of the Eagles' success in recent years and they have four starters back from last season as they try to defend their Super Bowl title.
Right tackle Lane Johnson is the most experienced member of that group and he's set to be the oldest starting tackle in the league at 35. Some players are slowing down at that age, but Johnson feels like he's moving in the other direction.
Advertisement
Johnson dealt with ankle injuries for several years and said last week that he feels better now than he did when he was 29 or 30. That's left him feeling like he still has new heights to reach as a player.
"I feel like I'm getting close to maybe my peak," Johnson said, via Reuben Frank of NBCSportsPhiladelphia.com. "As weird as it is to say, but that's truly how I feel. Maybe they need to do a Combine for guys 10 years [in the league], see how we do compared to 10 years ago.'
The Eagles would gladly sign up for more of the same from Johnson in 2025. If they get an even better player, the offense is going to be a difficult one to stop come the start of the regular season.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Buccaneers' Mike Evans Credits Baker Mayfield For His Return
Buccaneers' Mike Evans Credits Baker Mayfield For His Return originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Baker Mayfield era in Tampa Bay has been a successful one so far for the Buccaneers. When Tom Brady retired after the 2022 season, most thought the Bucs would suffer a period of adjustment and would be cellar dwellers in the NFC and the NFC South. Advertisement But a funny thing happened on the way to the cellar. General manager Jason Licht signed Mayfield to fill the shoes of Brady, and he did. Mayfield signed on a one-year "prove-it" deal with Tampa Bay, and proceeded to post career numbers. Licht then inked the former Texas Tech Red Raider and Oklahoma Sooner to a three-year, $100 million contract. Mayfield posted another career season in Year 2 with the Bucs. And star wideout Mike Evans couldn't be happier about it. "Huge impact (on Evans' career). He's a big reason to why I came back," Evans said. "The energy that he's brought to Tampa after Tom (Brady) -- that's some huge shoes to fill, huge act to follow -- and I think he's done an unbelievable job, winning two division championships, making it to the postseason. Advertisement "But Tampa's in great hands with Baker. I'm sure he'll play much longer than I will. I'm looking forward to a great season this year and competing for a Super Bowl." Evans was to enter into free agency last offseason and was in high demand. But he eventually stayed with the Bucs and signed a two-year, $41 million deal. As he enters the final season of that deal in 2025, the relationship with Mayfield and the trending upward of the team could convince Evans to stay a couple of more years. Related: Mike Florio Hints at a 'Bill Belichick to Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Scenario Related: 'Things Will Get Ugly...' If Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield Regresses in 2025 This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Commanders Aim to Stay Competitive After Luck-Filled 2024
Commanders Aim to Stay Competitive After Luck-Filled 2024 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Washington Commanders enjoyed one of the best turn-around seasons in major sports history in 2024. Following a 4-13 record in 2023 and no winning season since 2016, Washington finished 12-5 in the regular season and marched to the NFC title game before losing to the eventual Super Bowl champs. Advertisement There was a lot of change entering last season in the nation's capital, but it still made for one of the best seasons in recent memory. As phenomenal a turnaround as it was, it's worth mentioning how extremely lucky the Commanders were throughout last season. And no, not just with the Hail Mary to beat Chicago. For one, the Commanders finished the 2024 season with an astounding 87% conversion rate on fourth downs. They went 20-23 when deciding to go for it! Washington had things working in those situations, but it takes some degree of luck to reach an average that inflated. Moving forward, it is far too staggering a number to build an expectation out of. It's simply not sustainable year after year. Advertisement In 2024, 23.7% of the Commanders' points were scored on drives that included at least one successful fourth-down conversion. That is the fifth-highest percentage this century. Even cutting this percentage in half, that's a lot of scoring lost. The Commanders also saw the ball bounce their way a lot in crunch time. Washington had an 9-4 record in one-score games. They enjoyed a five-game streak winning games decided by eight or less near the end of the season. There were multiple factors that played into this, with many of them being out of the Commanders' control but simply working out in their favor. Washington was the fifth-healthiest team in the league based on "adjusted games lost" metric which accounts for the impact of each injury a team sustained. Advertisement Also, the Commanders benefitted from mishaps by their opponents. This can be seen in data analyst Tom Bliss' chart called the "luck dashboard" on Bliss highlighted four scenarios where 'teams benefit from actions in a game that are almost entirely derived from opponent performance or lucky bounces'. Those include opponent dropped passes, dropped interceptions, missed kicks, and fumble recoveries. In total, the Commanders were almost 60 points ahead of the next luckiest team in the NFL based on their opposition's mistakes. It's unfathomable for this luck to happen again, and it's definitely not something to be relied on. Advertisement 'We have found no correlation for this luck metric from season to season,' Bliss wrote in an email via The Washington Post. 'Thus, every team individually (including the Commanders) should expect to have a net win probability via luck of 0' going into next season. The Commanders may have recognized some of this luck, but as competitive athletes, they believe more in putting in the work in the offseason and reaping the rewards during the season. Karma, if you will. 'We made a lot of lucky (expletive) happen last year,' offensive lineman Andrew Wylie said. 'I'm not going to just discredit that. But a lot of winning-time moments went our way because we practiced them every day.' Washington may not get as lucky as they did last year, but another double-digit win season could prove that luck wasn't as strong a factor in their turnaround as we thought. Advertisement Related: Commanders Tipped To Be 'Most Improved' In 2025 Thanks To 2 Additions Related: Commanders Running Back Ready 'To Prove Who I Am' In 2025 This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.


USA Today
3 hours ago
- USA Today
Arizona Cardinals WR Michael Wilson believes the hype surrounding CB Will Johnson
Wilson sees a rookie who is dead serious about football and will live up to the hype. While he was on the Arizona Cardinals' first selection in the 2025 NFL draft, cornerback Will Johnson might be the rookie that fans are most excited to see. He was selected in the second round, taken 47th overall after he was expected to be drafted in the first round, and in some projections he was going in the top 10. But it isn't just fans who are excited to see what Johnson can do as a rookie. Teammates are, too. Receiver Michael Wilson is one of them. He raved about Johnson when he appeared on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM during minicamp. "Yeah, he looks focused," Wilson said of Johnson. "When certain guys step in a locker room or step on a field, you can tell if someone's dead serious about football. And I think he's one of those guys that lives, breathes, and dies football. "I think he's going to be somebody who lives up to the hype of the pick where he was taken. I think, going into last year, you saw people were saying he should have been a top 10 pick or was projected to a top 10 pick and then had the injury situation, whatever. I don't know. I'm not educated on all that, but I know he fell in the draft because of injury and stuff. So I think he's going to be a special player." Wilson will likely see a lot of reps against Johnson in training camp starting at the end of July. If Wilson is excited about what Johnson can be, that is something to pay attention. Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.