Lane Johnson isn't planning for a walk into the sunset, no matter the result of Super Bowl LIX.
The Eagles right tackle made that clear Saturday when asked about his career plans beyond the big game.
"I'm definitely not retiring after this game, win or lose," Johnson said. "I'm definitely playing next year. That's really how you take it I guess when you get up in age, is take it one year at a time. But physically, I feel a lot better than I have the past, probably, couple years. I feel really good. For being this late in the year, it's usually not like that. I'm thankful. We've got a good team here to help us with all that."
Johnson, who turns 35 in May, has shown every indication that he's still operating at his zenith.
He's failed to make a first or second All-Pro team just once dating back to his age-30 season, and that was due to missing nine games during the 2020 campaign. His current three-year Pro Bowl streak matches his previous three-year run from 2017-2019.
This season, Johnson anchored a line that helped forge Saquon Barkley's path to 2,000 rushing yards. Just the ninth such occurrence in NFL history, the feat is as much about the work in the trenches as it is Barkley's heroics -- if not more.
His impending return for a 13th season keeps in tact the NFL's top-graded offensive line by PFF. With Jordan Mailata locked in to lock down Jalen Hurts' blindside through 2029, plus the interior being buoyed by guard Landon Dickerson and center Cam Jurgens, who came into his own after some struggles in his first year replacing Jason Kelce, Philly's O-line is set to again be a fearsome force next season.
Unlike 30 other teams, though, there's still work to be done on the current campaign.
Johnson remains busy preparing to face off with the Kansas City Chiefs in a Super Bowl LVII rematch.
"We didn't finish what we started a couple years ago," he said. "We have a big chance to go play well and do something special. That's on our mind but, really, for me, I don't try to get caught up in the emotions of it. I just see it as something in the way and we've got to find a way to get it out of our way."
Depending on the result this time around, Johnson's Year 13 will either become an attempt at redemption or repeating.
