PHILADELPHIA — It takes a lot to shock Lane Johnson.What hasn’t the left tackle seen in his 13 seasons? He’s seen the Philadelphia Eagles’ first Super Bowl win — and their second. He’s seen comebacks and collapses. He’s seen three head coaches and nine starting quarterbacks. He’s seen five All-Pro and six Pro Bowl nods. He’s seen Myles Garrett, Micah Parsons, Nick Bosa, Aidan Hutchinson and T.J. Watt all careen toward him off the edge.A facility without Jeff Stoutland? No, Johnson hadn’t seen that. Stoutland had overseen the offensive line group since former coach Chip Kelly hired Stoutland away from Alabama in 2013, the same year the Eagles spent their No. 4 pick on Johnson. Sure, the run game was bleak in their 13th season together. Sure, the worst offensive efficiency in coach Nick Sirianni’s tenure called for significant changes. But Johnson didn’t expect Stoutland to step away from the Eagles amid a staff overhaul that brought in former Minnesota Vikings offensive line coach Chris Kuper to direct the position group’s shift to more zone blocking techniques.“It was a shocking ordeal for me,” Johnson said. “But after being in the league all these years, you can kind of see when things aren’t going the way we want to.”The 2025 season ended miserably on all fronts for Johnson. He spent the final stretch trying to return from a Week 11 Lisfranc sprain in his right foot that effectively ended his season. Johnson said he tried to anchor his foot on the first play against the Detroit Lions and felt it pop. Two plays later, he took on a bull rush from Hutchinson and couldn’t hold his footing. Three drives later, Johnson left the field.The Eagles opted not to place Johnson on injured reserve. This signaled hope he would return by the playoffs. Johnson said he tried to practice ahead of the Eagles’ NFC wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers, but his foot swelled up after a couple of series. His mobility was compromised. He couldn’t function. He watched as an underachieving team fielded its final indignity.“It wasn’t because of trying,” Johnson said of his absence.Retirement considerations followed Johnson into yet another offseason. The 36-year-old self-reflected and found he wanted to return. He said, “I didn’t want to go out that way.” He felt he’d still been performing at his peak. He’d always seen how most tackles trend downward in their 30s. He’d blossomed in his own. He’d played through injuries before, and this last one just required time he didn’t have at that point in the season.Johnson said his health wasn’t a factor in a decision to retire. He said he only considered it because of his family, his parents’ age and the inevitability of missing time with them. He said he started feeling 100 percent “around February, March.” He spoke to linebackers Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean, who experienced the same injury in their college and NFL careers. They told them there would be soreness but it’s expected. Johnson spent OTAs managing his body away from the facility, as he generally does, and reported to mandatory minicamp Tuesday. He participated fully.“I feel good,” Johnson said. “But it just took a long time to get here.”His new position coach and new scheme awaited him. And new drills.Kuper barked commands as a rotation of Eagles offensive linemen lined up their outside feet parallel to a rolled-up towel. Upon the snap, they lifted that foot and opened up their hips before lunging forward. There was the new step, the new pace and new mobility within an outside-zone blocking scheme Johnson said will give the offensive linemen better run-blocking angles. They will stretch defenses across the field with run and pass concepts that look the same, wear defensive linemen and linebackers out by making them cover significant ground and then “really tee off on them” with possibly pivoting to a more power style later in games.Johnson revered Stoutland. But Johnson affirmed he’s bought into Kuper as his new coach. Johnson said he talked to “a lot” of Vikings players, including two-time Pro Bowl right tackle Brian O’Neill, whom Johnson said told him Kuper was his favorite offensive line coach in his eight NFL seasons.Johnson also complimented first-time offensive coordinator Sean Mannion. Johnson said he spoke with former Eagles guard Isaac Seumalo, who was Mannion’s teammate at Oregon State for three seasons. Johnson’s endorsement of Mannion was notable. Johnson told reporters in Week 6 the offense (then led by former offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo) was predictable and wasn’t “efficient in anything” — and he never spoke to reporters again. Johnson said Tuesday “we’ll be able to evolve some” under the direction of this year’s coaching staff, which is drawing on offensive principles from the coaching trees of Mike Shanahan, Gary Kubiak, Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay and Mike McDaniel.“I’ve watched this system — this Kubiak-Shanahan style of offense — from afar, and I’ve always envied wanting to be a part of it,” Johnson said. “So, here I am after all these years getting a chance — not saying we’re gonna be better, there’s a lot to learn. But I think we have the ability to be more than what we were last year.”Johnson has expressed his excitement for the system’s built-in assistance before. In March, Johnson told the “Fitz & Whit” podcast that more wide-zone concepts meant there would be fewer moments when he would be isolated in one-on-one matchups with the Garrets and Hutchinsons and Watts of the world. On Tuesday, Johnson couldn’t contain his giddiness in saying, “I’ve never had, like, any guard help all these years.”He smiled wide. Chuckled. Held up one hand curled in an “A-OK.”“Very excited,” Johnson said.Quarterback notes from the first day of minicampAndy Dalton took second-team reps at QB on Tuesday. Tanner McKee was third team. McKee did not appear as sharp during under-center individual drills, often throwing off-target balls — apparently because of timing. If Dalton remains QB2 on Wednesday, the trend will be notable.The Eagles have often expressed their belief in McKee. His impressive debut start in 2024 helped win him the backup role in 2025, and it still contributes to the trade talks around him. A trade might become even more sensible if McKee indeed has a big learning curve in Mannion’s offense. Several draft analysts noted McKee’s heavy feet and lack of mobility coming out of college. Dalton, a 15-year veteran, knows the system better — at least for now. McKee, who has totaled 14 under-center snaps in the NFL, per TruMedia, had 46 under-center dropbacks in his career at Stanford versus 706 shotgun snaps.All that being said, Sirianni places a high value on ball security. On Tuesday, Dalton threw his second interception of the offseason practices available to the media. Edge rusher Jalyx Hunt said cornerback Kelee Ringo shouted out a signal to him before the snap, and Hunt dropped back into coverage and snagged Dalton’s throw. Hunt led the Eagles with three interceptions last season.Veteran OL shows new depth, reveals battles