Eagles’ offensive line has ‘tall task’ vs. Jaguars, but Fred Johnson says ‘Don’t count us out’
Also, linebacker Zack Baun has been cleared to play after missing Week 4 in concussion protocol.
Fred Johnson has been cut, waived, and traded. The Eagles offensive lineman has been with five teams (six if you count two stints with the Eagles) in eight seasons. He’s seen it all, Johnson said.
So what’s a week where one lineman retires and another is traded?
“It’s a whirlwind of emotions but tomorrow’s going to come and that’s the nature of the NFL,” said Johnson, a reserve lineman who is set to return Sunday in London after missing two games with a knee injury. “It doesn’t last for long and everything happens so fast that you can’t process it until afterwards.”
The whirlwind week will leave the Eagles with a shuffled offensive line as Lane Johnson’s retirement and the trade of Cam Jurgens was followed by the injury to center Drew Kendall, who was ruled out Friday after not practicing this week.
The offensive line could be left tackle Jordan Mailata joined by left guard Willie Lampkin, center Jake Majors, right guard Tyler Steen, and right tackle Markel Bell. Majors and Lampkin could be making their first NFL starts while Bell started his first game last week. The unit could have trouble against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who have allowed the third-fewest rushing yards per game (74.3) and have generated the fifth-most QB pressures without blitzing, per NFL Next Gen Stats.
“You know the nature of the business is ‘Oh, we’re down and out’ or ‘You’re a thin dog, you have nobody’,” Johnson said. “No one is going to care if we lose, so why not? That’s the tall task we have and I have 100% confidence in us, confidence in these guys, and this team. Don’t count us out yet.”
Baun cleared
Zack Baun will return after missing last week’s loss to the Los Angeles Rams following a concussion he suffered in Week 3 against Chicago.
Baun said he suffered a concussion in the game after being hit in the head on Sept. 28 but didn’t immediately know it was a concussion.
“I played through the rest of the game and then took another shot at the end of the game,” Baun said. “It kind of added up. I woke up the next day feeling foggy, groggy.”
Bye, Cam
Fred Johnson said he didn’t believe the Jurgens news when he first heard the lineman was traded Wednesday to Baltimore.
“I was like, ‘What?’ But then you find out that he knew and everyone knew,” Johnson said. “We wanted to say goodbye to our brother and send him off the right way. What was important was ‘Thank you for everything. We appreciate you. We love you. Go handle your business.’”
Nick Sirianni said Friday that he’ll miss Jurgens “dearly.”
“I love Cam, and he gave so much to this football team. I think about that NFC Championship game in ’24, where he was dressed, he was hurting, and Saquon goes up to him and just, ‘Hey, thanks for giving us everything you’ve got.’ He always gave everything he had.”
“I feel really confident in the room of who we have in there and the direction we’re moving toward. I wish Cam nothing but the best, but feel really good about everybody that’s in this room.”
Get your sleep
The Eagles moved up their practice times this week to prepare for Friday’s flight to London, and Baun said the team instructed players to go to bed an hour earlier each night to get ready for the time-zone switch.
The Birds flew to London in 2018 on a Thursday and practiced there on Friday before playing on Sunday. This year, they decided to practice all week in Philly and fly to London on Friday night. Rookie wide receiver Makai Lemon said the team was instructed to sleep on the plane.
“I feel like in our case, us leaving on Friday was the best case for us and making sure we got the right recovery,” Lemon said. “They did a great job of planning out the schedule for us.”
For over two decades, one of the guiding personnel principles of the Philadelphia Eagles organization has been to prioritize the offensive line. Through four games, and this past week in particular, the group has undergone dramatic turnover. Hall of Fame-caliber tackle Lane Johnson retired. Cam Jurgens was shipped to Baltimore in a trade. Their respective replacements have potential, but, compared to how general manager Howie Roseman has stockpiled talent on the line in the past, the options now seem less optimal. Did Roseman and the Eagles stray from a long-held philosophy? The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane retraces key decisions that brought the team to this point. Listen here.
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