How the Jaguars' Defense Should Attack the Eagles With Lane Johnson Retiring

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars are set to face an undermanned Philadelphia Eagles team on Sunday, and there is reason to believe they can take advantage of it.

The Eagles have faced several injury questions ahead of the two sides facing off in Week 5 in London, but the biggest blow came on Tuesday with All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson officially announcing his retirement after a 14-year career.

With Johnson no longer a factor for Anthony Campanile and the Jaguars' defense, how should Jacksonville attack the Eagles' offense on Sunday? We take a look below.

lane johnson — Aug 19, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson (65) walks to the practice field during training camp at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Attacking the Eagles

With Johnson officially not playing against the Jaguars, the Eagles will most likely turn to rookie offensive lineman Markel Bell as their new right tackle. Bell is a hulking lineman with plenty of talent and athletic traits, but he did struggles last week against the Los Angeles Rams. According to Pro Football Focus, Bell led the Eagles with six pressures allowed in a blown loss to the Rams that saw the Eagles' offense struggle.

The #Eagles offensive line

Markel Bell -- 6 pressures allowed, 18.8% pressure rate

Cam Jurgens -- 5 pressures allowed, 12.5% pressure rate

Drew Kendall -- 3 pressures allowed, 9.4% pressure rate
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrPHL) October 5, 2026

Bell is not a lost cause, of course, since he still showed good things as a run-blocker and because he had not received first-team reps in the lead-up to Sunday's game. But it does mean that the Jaguars have potentially found a weak spot in the Eagles' normally strong offensive line, which might also be without Cam Jurgens this week.

The Jaguars, of course, are coming off a strong game in terms of their pass-rush. They collected two sacks and 11 quarterback hits against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4 that saw Arik Armstead have a stellar outing, in addition to others like Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen. The trio combined for 15 pressures against the Bengals, and they could be picking up some much-needed momentum entering the Eagles week.

Hines-Allen and Walker are the Jaguars' two best pass-rushers by quite a bit, and the Jaguars have never been afraid to let both get reps against right tackles. Walker faces off against opposing right tackles more than Hines-Allen does, but this could be a week where the Jaguars are better off flipping that ratio to give Hines-Allen the most advantageous matchup possible.

Bell was a mark for the Eagles' offense last week, and the Jaguars need to ensure that they take advantage in the same manner. Johnson has held the right tackle spot down for a long time for the Eagles, and it will take longer than one week in London for the Eagles to truly fill his spot and move on.

The Jaguars have been better at getting after the passer this year when they rush four and do not blitz. That should be the strategy they take into Sunday: rush four and put the best pass-rushers on Bell, whle dropping the other seven defenders back in coverage to disrupt Jalen Hurts. This is a winning formula when executed against most teams, but the Eagles seem especially prone to it.

The Jaguars have all of the momentum entering Week 5. With Johnson now out of the picture, they must take the appropriate steps to ensure they can keep that momentum going.

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