Eagles RB Saquon Barkley Sends Message After Retirement Decision

Barkley and the Eagles were humming midway through the 2025 season. After a Week 11 victory over the Detroit Lions, the Eagles were sitting at 8-2, atop the NFC East and gearing up for another playoff run. Philadelphia did not realize at the time that this would be the peak of their season, with the team losing Johnson, one of their top offensive lineman, the very next week.

Johnson has been a stalwart for the Philadelphia offensive line. He was drafted with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, and the right tackle has been a key cog in the Super Bowl championships that the Eagles have won. The five-time All-Pro lineman faced difficulties last season, missing the last half of his 13th NFL season due to a Lisfranc injury.

After a strong start, the Eagles lost four of their last seven regular-season games without their star tackle. Backsliding into the playoffs with momentum against them, they ended up going home early as well. But after his 13th season, and after coming off a serious injury, many were speculating on the potential retirement of Johnson, 35. Yet, he dispelled these rumors by announcing he was coming back for his 14th season on an Instagram post.

Nobody was more excited for Johnson's return than Barkley, who appeared on the Sirius XM Radio program “Movin' The Chains" to discuss his right tackle.

“The news got broke, I was doing this thing with Red Cross and I was told Lane was coming back,” said Barkley. “I guess I was naive to think that it was no question, I just kind of assumed he would be back. I know he is later in his career, but man, you see how this guy works and practice, how he takes care of his body. Success is not an accident, it's not an accident. He's been this great for this long and he’s moving well, he’s playing well, so, super excited to have him back and I know what he brings to our team and what we are definitely trying to accomplish next year. We’re gonna need him, so I am excited for that.”

For the Eagles, bringing back Johnson is instrumental to their team's success. The Eagles are banking on a healthy season by their star tackle to return to Super Bowl form for the 2026 NFL season.