Dynasties don’t collapse all at once. They erode quietly, a step slower here, a contract there, unless someone is planning ahead. The Philadelphia Eagles have built their identity on never being caught unprepared, especially in the trenches.
And while Lane Johnson is still performing like time signed a non-compete clause, even legends come with expiration dates.
Monroe Freeling Could Be Eagles’ Plan After Lane Johnson
According to Jacob Infante of PFSN, Georgia offensive tackle Monroe Freeling feels less like a luxury and more like inevitability. The Eagles don’t draft replacements when the house is already on fire. They draft them while the paint is still drying.
“Within the last month or two, Monroe Freeling has become a red-hot name in draft circles. He stepped in as Georgia’s starting left tackle in 2025 and demonstrated elite physical prowess. He’s a bit raw but features tremendous size at 6’7″ and 315 pounds with rare athleticism for such a big man,” Infante wrote about Freeling, projected to go at No. 23.
Johnson will enter his 14th NFL season in 2026, and remarkably, there’s little evidence of decline, as he has scored 77.8 on PFSN’s Player OL Impact metric. But the Eagles operate on a long-view lens. They believe in apprenticeship. In learning at the elbow of greatness. In drafting offensive linemen before they desperately need one.
Freeling fits that philosophy with almost eerie precision. In 2025, he stepped into Georgia’s starting left tackle role and didn’t blink. Across 13 appearances, 12 starts, he anchored an offense that averaged 31.9 points per game while churning out 406.9 total yards per contest.
Freeling himself allowed only two sacks over 747 offensive snaps, earning Second-Team All-SEC honors from conference coaches. For a first-year full-time starter in the SEC, that’s composed.
There’s something almost disarming about watching someone that big move that smoothly. Freeling doesn’t lumber. He glides. The Eagles’ offensive evolution, with a heavier lean toward stretch-zone and outside-zone concepts under offensive line coach Chris Kuper, demands tackles who can live in space.
Freeling thrives there. He climbs to the second level with balance, squares up linebackers in open grass, and mirrors speed rushers with the kind of lateral quickness that makes evaluators double-check his listed weight.
There’s also a familiarity factor that can’t be ignored. The Eagles have repeatedly turned to Georgia’s pipeline, drafting Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, and Nolan Smith in recent years. They trust the program. They trust the preparation. And Freeling would fit seamlessly into that lineage.
