Derrick Gunn says Lane Johnson is unlikely to star in Eagles vs. Panthers

It looks like the Philadelphia Eagles could be without Lane Johnson again this weekend.

Although he apparently returned to Philly on Wednesday, the Eagles’ starting right tackle made not attend team practice on Thursday. Derrick Gunn also shared the following information about 97.5 The Fanatic:

For those who don’t know, Gunn seems to have a pretty close relationship with the subject here. Johnson has made several appearances on Gunn’s podcast.

The nature of Johnson’s absence is still unclear. The Eagles have been reluctant to provide details, only referring to the situation as a “personal matter.”

For what it’s worth, Crossing Broad’s Kevin Kinkead shared what he hears from his “Eagles mystery source”. This same source has provided a number of scoops in the past (examples: here, here, and here), so it may be worth paying attention to.

While we are to assume that Johnson will indeed be unavailable against the Panthers, that’s not the best news for Philly. The Eagles offensive line came out on top against the Chiefs in Week 4, but KC has one of the worst passes and defenses in the NFL. The Panthers, on the other hand, have a much more formidable unit with headlining Brian Burns and Haason Reddick.

The Eagles have several options in the right tackle if Johnson is not playing.

1) If Jordan Mailata is healthy enough to play, the Eagles can throw him on the right tackle and keep Andre Dillard on the left tackle.

2) If Mailata can play, the Eagles can ask him to replace Dillard on the left tackle and throw Jack Driscoll on the right tackle.

3) If Mailata CANNOT play, the Eagles can get Dillard to stay on left tackle and place Driscoll on right tackle with Nate Herbig playing on right guard again. Same composition as last week.

It usually takes a lot for Johnson not to play that way, as DGunn suggested, maybe he’ll force his way onto the pitch. Otherwise, the Eagles will have to try to do without him in a crucial game.