The future Hall of Fame right tackle is nearing a return Sunday against San Francisco.
PHILADELPHIA - Eagles star right tackle Lane Johnson was practicing for the second consecutive day Thursday, a clear signal that the plan is for the future Hall of Famer to return for Sunday’s Wild Card Weekend game against the San Francisco 49ers.
Johnson, 35, hasn’t played since suffering a Lisfranc sprain in his foot on Nov. 16, missing the final seven games of the regular season, where backup Fred Johnson did most of the work at RT. One of the NFL’s best offensive linemen, Johnson has not allowed a sack in the 10 games he did play this season, according to Pro Football Focus. Johnson was listed as limited on Wednesday’s practice report but was taking reps with the starters during the individual portion of practice open to reporters. The lone player on the 53-man roster not observed at Thursday’s practice was left guard Landon Dickerson. However, the Eagles have been managing Dickerson late in the season and have been given the three-time Pro Bowl selection one rest day a week. With backup Brett Toth in the concussion protocol, veteran OL Matt Pryor stood in during individual drills at LG. Toth was back to doing stretching drills after missing practice on Wednesday but did not have his helmet.Jan 4, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Grant Calcaterra goes down injured during the third quarter against the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field. | Eric Hartline-Imagn ImagesThe other four players, along with Johnson who began the week limited – defensive tackle Jalen Carter , linebacker Nakobe Dean , safety Marcus Epps , and tight end Dallas Goedert – were again practicing in some form on Thursday. Edge defenders Jaelan Phillips and Azeez Ojulari were full participants on Wednesday and will presumably reach that bar again. However, Ojulari remains on injured reserve and is in the midst of his 21-day practice window for a potential return. If all goes to plan the Eagles should have 21 of their 22 default starters on the field against the 49ers, with the only exception being rookie safety Drew Mukuba, who broke his ankle and is on IR.John McMullen is a veteran reporter who has covered the NFL for over two decades. The current NFL insider for JAKIB Media, John is the former NFL Editor for The Sports Network where his syndicated column was featured in over 200 outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He was also the national NFL columnist for Today's Pigskin as well as FanRag Sports. McMullen has covered the Eagles on a daily basis since 2016, first for ESPN South Jersey and now for Eagles Today on SI.com's FanNation. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube.com. John is also the host of his own show "Extending the Play" on AM1490 in South Jersey and part of 6ABC.com's live postgame show after every Eagles game. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
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