One important mission the Philadelphia Eagles needed to accomplish during the offseason was to make sure they had the future set up behind right tackle Lane Johnson after he nearly retired from the NFL.
The Eagles did exactly that during the 2026 NFL Draft when they selected Miami offensive tackle Markel Bell in the third round. Bell's 6-foot-9 and 346-pound frame makes him an ideal candidate to replace Johnson in the future, and reporters already got to see it firsthand.
During the Eagles' second day of OTAs, the media was invited to check out the practice and see the team work out. Johnson was one of six players who were absent from it, so Bell got to get first-team reps at right tackle.
Markel Bell got to play with the starters in the first week of OTAs
Johnson is still recovering from the foot injury he suffered in the win over the Detroit Lions last season that ended up costing him the last eight games of the season, including the playoffs. That injury prompted the Eagles to begin building their offensive line for the future with Bell's selection, as well as guard Micah Morris in the sixth round.
These are valuable reps Bell took in practice that will benefit him as he works with great linemen like Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and Tyler Steen. It also came as a bit of a surprise that Fred Johnson did not get first-team reps, since he was Lane Johnson's replacement last season.
It shows, though, that the Eagles are serious about Bell being the future at the right tackle position and want to give him every opportunity to earn that successor title. Despite not having played in the NFL, his performance last year with the Hurricanes was enough for him to earn the right to step on the field with the Eagles' starters after allowing just nine pressures, one quarterback hit, and zero sacks in 440 pass-blocking snaps.
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Bell's selection in the NFL Draft is already looking like a good decision for the Eagles after letting Matt Pryor and Brett Toth walk in free agency and picking two rookies to replace them. It may take some time to see whether Bell will actually be a steal of a draft pick for the Eagles, but for him to already be taking first-team reps clearly shows a good sign of things to come.
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