Lane Johnson remains in limbo, so the Eagles are left trying to figure out how to deploy their linemen with and without their potentially suspended right tackle.
Johnson still hasn’t gotten a ruling on his B sample, after the first one tested positive for a banned supplement which would cost him a 10-game suspension since it’s his second offense of the performance-enhancing substances policy. And until there’s some finality, the Eagles are playing him in the preseason, and would start him in the opener if there’s no official word by Sept. 11.
“This is something that we wrestle with every day,” Eagles coach Doug Pederson said, via Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I’ll tell you this: If he’s ready to go, then he’s our guy. You just go with that, because he’s got plenty of reps in training camp. . . . But we’ve got to cover all our bases one way or the other and just have a plan when we get to that point.”
Johnson would start at right tackle until a suspension comes. If or when that happens, left guard Allen Barbre would move to right tackle, with Isaac Seumalo and Stefen Wisniewski competing to fill Barbre’s old job.
Either way, Johnson’s going to play Thursday, though it could be his last game for nearly three months. While he ostensibly put them in this spot for failing the test (though he’s suing the supplement manufacturer because the banned ingredient wasn’t on the label) , having to wait so long to find out his fate puts the Eagles in a pinch, as they try to prepare for a season with plenty of other issues.
