The Philadelphia Eagles should have some reinforcements on the way, as star RT Lane Johnson and iDL Jalen Carter are poised to return from their injuries Week 17 against the Bills, according to a report from ESPN.
Lane Johnson
In the Eagles’ Week 11 win over the Lions, Lane Johnson suffered a Lisfranc (foot) injury, and missed the next five games, a span during which the team went 2-3. Fred Johnson filled in and played reasonably well in his absence.
After the injury, the Eagles opted not to place Johnson on injured reserve, which would have required him to sit out at least four games. The Eagles left open the possibility that he could return to the field sooner, but he did not.
Johnson didn’t practice at all in advance of the Eagles’ Saturday win over the Commanders, and he was ruled out on Thursday. He did warm up with the team prior to kickoff on Saturday evening.
Jalen Carter
Carter underwent a procedure on both of his shoulders following the Eagles’ loss to the Bears Week 13. He did not play well in that game, and his shoulders were cited as a reason why. He missed three games, against the Chargers, Raiders, and Commanders.
Carter had a breakout season in 2024, despite facing constant double teams. He made his first Pro Bowl and earned his first All-Pro nod after his regular season performance, and made arguably the two biggest plays of the season in the Divisional Round against the Rams, when he sacked Matthew Stafford on a late third down and forced a quick, off-target throw on fourth down, saving the Eagles’ season.
In the Super Bowl, he was a major reason why the Eagles’ defensive line obliterated the Chiefs’ offensive line, as he often occupied the Chiefs’ two best linemen, allowing his teammates to dominate favorable one-on-one matchups across the board otherwise.
Carter played the most snaps in the NFL among interior defensive linemen last season.
• Jalen Carter, Eagles: 1,068
• Zach Allen, Broncos: 1031
• Kobie Turner, Rams: 919
There were concerns about Carter’s conditioning heading into the 2024 season, but he put those to bed. However, the newer concern heading into 2025 was that overuse could compromise his effectiveness, especially after missing most of training camp with a shoulder injury.
Carter has not had a good 2025 season, at least relative to expectations. He was ejected from the Eagles’ Week 1 game against Dallas before ever playing a snap because he spit on Dak Prescott. His production has also taken a hit, as he has 20 tackles, 2 sacks, and no forced fumbles through the Eagles’ first 15 games of the season.
Moro Ojomo, Jordan Davis, Byron Young, and Brandon Graham have picked up the slack, and then some. Those four guys have combined for 39 tackles, 8 sacks, 9 TFLs, and 10 QB hits during Carter’s three-game absence.
If Carter is now healthy, he will have an opportunity to join a defensive front that is already playing very well without him. And if he can play anywhere near the level that he did in 2024, the Eagles’ defense could be downright scary heading into the playoffs.
Should Johnson and Carter even play in these final two regular season games?
The Eagles will very likely be the 3 seed heading into the playoffs. They do still have a reasonable chance at jumping to the 2 seed, and there are highly unlikely scenarios in which they can rise to the 1 seed or fall to the 4 seed. Deniz Selman has you covered on those scenarios here:
Inpredictable has the Eagles’ chances at getting the 2 seed at 18 percent.
The 2 seed is valuable. It would guarantee that the Eagles would play home games in the playoffs until at least the NFC Championship Game. The 3 seed would only guarantee one home game in the Wild Card Round. The 2 seed is worth chasing.
But also, the Eagles can see how Week 17 plays out, and if they’re locked into the 3 seed at that time, they can rest starters ahead of the playoffs. It wouldn’t be the worst thing to allow Johnson and Carter to get their sea legs back Week 17 in Buffalo, assuming they are not at risk of tweaking their respective injuries.
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