Jaelan Phillips continues to get the bulk of the national attention, and rightfully so for the Philadelphia Eagles’ new game-wrecking edge defender.
But general manager Howie Roseman might have saved this 2025 season with a more underrated move that nobody's talking about.
The Eagles lost swing tackle Fred Johnson in free agency this offseason, only to bring him back in a late-August trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The price was just a 2026 seventh-round draft pick, but the reward could be much bigger with star right tackle Lane Johnson’s season suddenly in doubt.
Lane Johnson exited Sunday night’s win over the Detroit Lions after only 14 snaps due to a foot injury, and the prognosis by Monday morning was not good. He’s expected to miss between four and six weeks due to a Lisfranc sprain, meaning it’s possible we won't see him play again until the NFC playoffs.
The one silver lining? Fred Johnson has been sneaky-good for the Eagles when called upon, and he’ll be asked to help anchor the right side of the offensive line until Philly’s five-time All-Pro is cleared to return.
Swing tackle Fred Johnson could end up being the Philadelphia Eagles’ savior down the stretch
The Eagles’ offense has been a tractor pull all season, so an injury to one of their most prominent players has catastrophe written all over it.
That may not be the case with Fred Johnson. Over the past two seasons, the Eagles haven’t skipped a beat when inserting their underrated swing tackle into the starting lineup.
The #Eagles are also 5-1 in games Fred Johnson has started. https://t.co/fKpAXgvcm3
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrPHL) November 17, 2025
Fred Johnson has surrendered just one sack and seven total QB pressures over his 181 total offensive snaps this season, per Pro Football Focus; that includes some competitive reps against star Lions pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson on Sunday night.
The Eagles clearly see value in the 28-year-old’s ability to be a weekly NFL starter, and this could be his chance, starting with the Week 12 game against the Dallas Cowboys. Along with being stout in pass protection this season, Johnson has committed only one penalty and has been among the Eagles' most efficient run blockers in recent weeks.
It was a bit odd to see the Eagles let a quality depth player walk in free agency for a modest, $1.3 million contract, but Roseman righted his wrong by calling Jaguars GM James Gladstone back in August.
Read more: Nick Sirianni suddenly has to fix the one problem no Eagles fan saw coming
With all due respect to Phillips, the Fred Johnson move could end up being the Eagles' most impactful of this 2025 season.