Eagles tackle Lane Johnson, soon to be 35, plans to keep on playing: ‘I love the challenge of being an older player’

A parade of people joined Brandon Graham on stage Tuesday afternoon at the NovaCare Complex for photos with the retiring Eagles defensive end and his two Lombardi Trophies.

At one point, Graham was flanked by Fletcher Cox and Lane Johnson, and there they were, the Eagles’ first-round picks from 2010, 2012, and 2013, smiles on their faces. All three of them were crucial in winning one of those two trophies, and two of them, Graham and Johnson, helped secure the second one.

On his way to the stage, Cox joked about not caring about what he wears anymore and not having to worry about his weight. “I don’t have to be fat anymore,” he said.

The three players are all around the same age. Graham is 36, Cox and Johnson are 34 (Johnson turns 35 in May). But while Cox was ready to offer Graham some words of wisdom about life after the NFL, Johnson, a five-time All-Pro right tackle, apparently still has plenty of football ahead of him. Before last season, Johnson said he thought it was realistic to play two or three more seasons, which would have him calling it a career after the 2025 or 2026 seasons. On Monday, Johnson and the Eagles agreed to an extension that keeps him under contract through the 2027 season with the team that drafted him fourth overall in 2013.

Does he plan to fulfill the contract and play through 2027?

» READ MORE: Brandon Graham’s retirement speech, annotated and explained

“I mean, it’s very possible,” Johnson said Wednesday. “I think when you get to this stage of your career, you take it year by year. Physically, I feel really good.

“When you’re about to turn 35, you tend to reflect a lot.”

Johnson didn’t necessarily expect to be feeling this good at this stage. Two years ago, he thought his body was starting to break down. He had adductor surgery in his groin in February 2023. The game had taken its toll on Johnson, who has suffered multiple concussions and injuries to his ankles and knees, as well as mental health issues that kept him off the field for a stretch in 2021. But Johnson got through the next two seasons mostly healthy, and he doesn’t want to think about stopping yet.

“As long as I’m feeling good and feel I can contribute, I’ll continue to play,” Johnson said. “It’s all I’ve really known. I love my football family. I’m an only child. My brothers are here.”

One fewer without Graham. With all due respect to kicker Jake Elliott, who isn’t subject to the physical toll of the others, Johnson, now the longest-tenured Eagle, is the last nonspecialist standing from that 2017-18 Super Bowl team.

Johnson has taken a liking to being the older guy in the locker room. He values his one-on-one time with younger players, he said. Jason Peters helped prepare Johnson for life in the NFL. He told Johnson about the city, the organization, and what he needed to focus on to be a great tackle in the league. Johnson eventually will do that for his successor, though this new contract extends that timeline a little bit.

“I think actions speak a lot louder than what words can,” Johnson said. “I hope when I come in here every day, people see that I have a routine, that I’m working, training, and hopefully I’m elevating my teammates around me to get better and do the same thing.”

Johnson said he looks to older athletes like LeBron James and Cuban wrestler Mijaín López, who won a fifth Olympic gold medal at age 41, to know that he can still perform at a high level.

» READ MORE: Brandon Graham’s positivity will be his lasting legacy as an Eagles all-timer

“There are people that are able to go past the barriers or perceived barriers,” he said. “I look to guys and athletes like that as inspiration, just to know that it’s possible.”

Not that Johnson was ever going anywhere, but this contract all but solidifies that he’ll finish his career in Philadelphia. Along with Elliott, he can become the first player to win three Super Bowls with the Eagles, and he will end his career with a strong case for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“It’d be an awesome experience,” Johnson said of that possibility. “I never wanted to go to another team. The Eagles have always been here for me, good and bad. They’ve been pivotal for my development as a player and as a person off the field.

“My goal is to play well throughout my middle to maybe my upper 30s. I love the challenge of being an older player and the routine you got to keep up with. I think that’s what I love most about football, just the conflict and the constant trying to improve. I think the people that I’m in the building with have a similar mindset. When you combine all these things, I think that’s why we’ve had success here the past 10 years and why they’re going to have success long after I’m gone.”

Johnson’s backup, Fred Johnson, signed Wednesday with the Jacksonville Jaguars, ESPN reported.

The Eagles have internal options at backup swing tackle, including Darian Kinnard and Laekin Vakalahi.