Lane Johnson injury update: Eagles get relatively good news

Philadelphia’s right tackle could reportedly be back “real soon.”

Lane Johnson is not as seriously injured as was originally believed shortly following the Philadelphia Eagles’ Week 6 loss to the New York Jets. NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo offered some relatively encouraging updates on Monday afternoon:

This sentiment also lines up with what NFL insider Adam Schefter had to say on Monday.

Jeff McLane reports Johnson could be back on the field as soon as the Eagles’ Week 7 game against the Miami Dolphins.

It was previously reported that the Eagles feared Johnson suffered a high ankle injury that could keep him out four-to-six weeks. Had that been the case, Johnson would’ve been destined to go on injured reserve. Now he’ll seemingly avoid that designation.

Allow me to state the obvious: the sooner the Eagles can get Johnson back on the field, the better. He’s unarguably one of the most indispensable players on the team:

Backup right tackle Jack Driscoll was pretty awful in Johnson’s absence; Pro Football Focus had him down for a whopping eight pressures allowed on 43 pass blocking snaps. For context, Evan Neal has allowed the most pressures of any NFL offensive lineman this season with 29 total … or 4.83 per game.

The Eagles will apparently hope to have Johnson play for them against Miami. If he’s not available, they should strongly considering going with a non-Driscoll option. Fred Johnson has some experience playing there. Tyler Steen looked good at left tackle during training camp so maybe the Eagles could try moving him over to the right side. Or they could opt to move Jordan Mailata over to the right side with Johnson or Steen at LT?

The Eagles are already without starting right guard Cam Jurgens, who will miss at least two more starts while on injured reserve.