July 04, 2026
Philadelphia Eagles training camp begins at the end of July, so over the next few weeks we'll detail what we need to see from each positional group heading into the 2026 season. We'll continue on today with the offensive tackles.
Previous training camp previews
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
First, the depth chart:
| OT | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| LT | Jordan Mailata | Fred Johnson | Myles Hinton | Hollin Pierce |
| RT | Lane Johnson | Markel Bell | John Ojukwu | Cameron Williams |
• Lane Johnson skipped voluntary OTAs, as he usually has later in his career. He has certainly earned that right. He was present at mandatory minicamp, and appeared fully recovered from the Lisfranc injury that cost him almost half of the 2025 season. He rejoins Jordan Mailata as the best offensive tackle tandem in the NFL.
• Johnson and Mailata seem to be fans of the new scheme Sean Mannion is installing. Mailata referred to Mannion as an "evil genius." He clarified that that's a good thing, that he "knows ball."
Appearing on the Fitz and Whit podcast, Johnson noted that his job might be a little easier in the new scheme.
That's former OT Andrew Whitworth, who played 17 years in the NFL, pointing out that Johnson has been left on an island more than any other OT in the NFL.
For the entirety of the Doug Pederson era through the Nick Sirianni era, the Eagles have asked Johnson to single-block the league's best pass rushers, game after game, and he shut them down every week. But, even as a still-elite pass protector, the Eagles could slow Johnson's eventual decline if they start giving him some occasional help. (Not that he even needs it yet, in my opinion.)
• With Johnson sitting out OTAs, third-round rookie Markel Bell got to play with the starters at RT, when it would have been easy to just insert Fred Johnson in there. And then when Lane showed up for minicamp, Bell played LT with the second-team offense. Obviously the team hopes that Bell can develop long-term, but it also appears that they are trying to prepare him for an immediate role as a key backup this season.
There's only so much you can tell in spring practices without pads and very limited contact, but Bell is a massive 6'9, 346-pound OT, and in my opinion he moved well. He also didn't look unnatural at RT, which is noteworthy considering he really only played LT in college in games, though Bell did note during rookie minicamp that he was cross-trained during practices at Miami at RT. Some guys can easily move back and forth between LT and RT. Some guys (cough, Andre Dillard) can't.
The Eagles' hope is that Bell can develop into a legitimate successor for Johnson. And if so, that's a future first-round pick that can be used to address some other position.
• Fred Johnson appeared in all 18 of the Eagles' games in 2025, and started nine. He played a career-high 626 regular season snaps, plus another 72 in the playoffs. He played 521 snaps at RT in relief of Lane Johnson, and 67 snaps at LT in the Week 18 "resting starters" game against the Commanders.
Johnson was fine enough in relief of Lane Johnson, but was pretty obviously a downgrade, which is going to be true of any backup trying to fill the shoes of one of the best offensive linemen in NFL history.
Last offseason, Johnson signed with the Jaguars in hopes of competing for a starting job. He did not win a starting job in their training camp, and the Jags traded him back to the Eagles for a late Day 3 pick. Johnson wants to start, and knows that will not happen in Philly as long as Mailata and Lane Johnson stay healthy. This offseason, Johnson once again likely tried to land with a team that offered a better chance to earn a starting spot, but it seems those opportunities did not materialize, so he is back again.
In addition to employing the best starting tandem in the NFL, the Eagles have very good depth at OT.
On a side note, if the Eagles like what they see out of Bell throughout training camp and think he could be a good swing tackle out of the box, maybe a trade of Fred Johnson would make sense.
It's also worth noting that Johnson played guard in college and early in his pro career, so maybe he could help out on the Eagles' interior, where they aren't quite as deep?
• Myles Hinton and Cameron Williams were both Day 3 picks in the 2025 draft. Neither had good training camps. Both guys spent the majority of the season on IR, more or less redshirting during their rookie seasons. Williams got to play in the Eagles' Week 18 "resting starters" game against the Commanders. He had to try to block a future Hall of Famer in Von Miller all day, and that went about as one might expect.
This summer, we'll see if there was notable improvement by either player. New OL coach Chris Kuper is making it a priority to cross-train his backups at multiple positions, and we've already seen Hinton play some guard in media-attended practices. We've also seen Hollin Pierce play some tackle after he played guard under Jeff Stoutland last year.
Year-to-year improvement and versatility will decide who among guys like Hinton, Williams, Pierce, and free agent John Ojukwu are able to stick on the 53. There's probably only room for one of those guys, if any.
Follow Jimmy & PhillyVoice on Twitter: @JimmyKempski | thePhillyVoice
Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice Sports
Add Jimmy's RSS feed to your feed reader
