Lane Johnson’s Big Week, By the Numbers


Some key Lane Johnson numbers from this past week:

7-pounds, 13 ounces, 20 inches:  the weight and length of his new baby boy, David Jace Johnson, who arrived on Saturday.

“When he came out, I thought his hands were as big as mine — they were huge,” said a sleep-deprived Johnson after practice Tuesday.  “My wife is 5-11, my father-in-law is 6-6, my dad is 6-6, so ain’t no tellin’ how big he is going to be when he gets grown.” (Johnson tweeted out a picture of his son that he simply titled, Big ol hands.)

The key number when it comes to his job: 1.95.

That was the overall grade the Eagles coaching staff gave him for Friday’s performance against the Patriots. It was the highest mark out of all the offensive linemen. Johnson explained the scoring system on Tuesday afternoon.

“I think 2 is the best you can get,” said Johnson. “Basically every play they have a scoring system. It could be a zero, which is pretty much total failure, and then I think three is being the most dominant you can. Twos and threes are good numbers for every play, so that’s how they grade ’em. I think I had a few threes, but mostly twos.”

Johnson got 21 snaps against New England. That number could jump up Thursday against the Panthers, as Chip Kelly is planning on playing the first unit for about a half. The rookie set the bar pretty high for himself in the first outing.

“It was only the first game. There are a lot of games left in front of me and I am just trying to stay consistent,” said Johnson. “That’s the main thing in this league. You don’t want to be good one week and terrible the next. I’m just trying to stay consistent, and keep learning and growing.”

This week will present a unique challenge for the No. 4 overall pick. He returned to the team Monday night and Tuesday was basically a walkthrough, meaning that he will play without much practice time at all. But being back in Oklahoma was the right move, both from the player and coach’s perspective.

“I think it was really important for him to be there [for his child’s birth],” said Kelly. “Where it fell in the season, and for a guy like him who has been here every single day since we drafted him, his attention to detail, how hard he works and all of that, it was absolutely no question. There are certain things that come up in everyone’s life that supersedes what we’re doing out here. He didn’t seem to miss a beat when he jumped right back in. He was here last night for the walkthrough, and I feel real confident he’ll be able to play.

“I know all of us felt he played pretty good for his first preseason game. Hopefully he can improve upon what he did last week.”

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