Philadelphia Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday, ending a 14 season career. Johnson, 36, had considered retirement during the offseason before making his decision four games into the Eagles’ season.

Johnson was a surprise inactive for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams. The Eagles did not know until that morning that he would not play, and rookie Markel Bell started in his place.

“I deeply wanted to gut it out for one more year; to take the field with my brothers for one last season. But after a lot of reflection, I've realized that my personal and family priorities have changed. Right now it is critical that I focus on my mental health,” Johnson wrote in a statement posted to social media.

He also addressed the commitment he believed playing football required. “I owe it to my teammates, coaches, the organization and the fans to have my head and heart 100% in the game. And right now my heart is telling me that it's time to say goodbye to football.”

Thank you. https://t.co/up2kH1K40p

— Lane Johnson (@LaneJohnson65) October 6, 2026

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Bell is the most likely candidate to replace Johnson in the lineup for the remainder of the season. The 2-2 Eagles now must adapt without a player described as one of the best in franchise history.

Johnson missed four practices during training camp for personal reasons. When he returned in August, he said the season would likely be his last in the NFL, with family life increasingly pulling his attention away from football.

Both of Johnson’s parents were dealing with health issues, he said. He also noted that his oldest child is 13 and said “it's hard to get time back, especially those years I feel like are very pivotal.”

“As you get older, things change in your life, priorities. Your children get older, your parents get older, it just puts things into perspective,” Johnson said at the time. “It's looking like this is potentially going to be probably my last year just because I am getting to that point. Those priorities away from football are starting to merge. I love everything about this game and am preparing for it, but this is kind of where I'm at in my career.”

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The Eagles selected Johnson with the No. 4 pick in 2013 after he played at Oklahoma. He went on to receive six Pro Bowl selections and twice earned first-team All-Pro honors while helping Philadelphia win two Super Bowl championships, the only two in franchise history.

Philadelphia posted a .659 winning percentage when Johnson played, including the playoffs, compared with .375 when he did not. The Eagles were 122-63-1 when Johnson started and 18-30 when he was not in the lineup.

“Lane excelled under multiple coaching staffs, maintaining an elite level of play throughout his entire career. His combination of talent, strength, athleticism, and intelligence made him a truly unique player in this league, and there is no doubt in my mind that one day he will be named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said in a statement.

Johnson also became one of the leading mental health advocates in sports during his career in Philadelphia. He spoke openly about experiences with anxiety and depression that dated to 2008, when he was a college freshman.

During the 2021 season, Johnson missed three games while experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms after attempting to taper off an antidepressant. He was also dealing with the physical and mental effects of an ankle injury that prevented him from playing up to his perfectionist standards.

His openness after returning affected the Eagles’ locker room. Tackle Jordan Mailata said at the time that Johnson was “opening up a pathway” for players to discuss personal struggles and was viewed as the “focal point of our locker room for mental health.”

“I've never had any siblings, so being in a locker room, those guys are my brothers,” Johnson said. “I can tell from body language, I can tell from a lot of stuff that people are not doing good. So my thing is to just talk to them ... to get personal with them and really tell them how I was feeling very similar, and I know what you're feeling, I know what you're going through.”

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