Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson missed practice this week with the groin injury that has been bothering him for six weeks, but he said there’s no doubt that he’ll be on the field in Super Bowl LVII.
Johnson, who missed the final two games of the regular season, said the pain he’s feeling now is not as bad as it was when he returned for the first postseason game.
“It’s better now,” Johnson said, via the Delaware County Daily Times. “That first game was going to be a challenge. And honestly that second game was a challenge. But the first game, for me, personally was a challenge. . . . The [Giants] game for me was hard, really hard, because I wasn’t sure I could play. But after that initial contact, I was good. I had better confidence in the second round.”
Johnson said he’s been told the injury won’t fully heal until he has surgery, but the surgery would have put him out of the playoffs, so he decided not to have surgery until after the Super Bowl.
“It is what it is,” he said, “but it is not bothering me to the extent it was earlier.”
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni has called Johnson the best tackle in the NFL, and Johnson is showing that he’s a great teammate by putting his body on the line for his team.