Twitter Mailbag: The Latest On Lane

Sign up to get the best of Philly, every day.

Happy Fourth of July to our football family.

We are approaching the two-year mark here at Birds 24/7 (Our first post was on July 23, 2012). The site has been blessed with a smart and loyal and passionate readership since Day 1. We are very proud of the community that has been created and are looking forward to sharing in this upcoming season with you. For now, enjoy the holiday. We have a couple posts scheduled for the weekend in case you need to scratch that itch. Knowing you, you will. That’s why we get along so well.

Now onto the mailbag:

@Tim_McManus Is it usual for there to be this long of a break between PED failed test to suspension announcement? Appeal process already? — Matthew J Flint (@matthewjflint) July 3, 2014

The NFL announced the suspensions of Dion Jordan and Chiefs offensive lineman Rokevious Watkins Friday afternoon for failing drug tests, and some are wondering why the league remains quiet on Lane Johnson.The league office told us on Monday — the day the report came out — that it had not yet received any information on Johnson. I followed up on Wednesday and there was nothing new to report. That may seem strange, but players often find out about a failed drug test days before the NFL does.

Per the rulebook, an independent administrator contacts the player about a positive result. The player has five days to notify the administrator if he wishes to have the “B” sample test observed by a qualified toxicologist. It can be another week before the “B” sample test is initiated. If there is a confirmed positive, the administrator will contact the league office and the players association about its findings. Once the league gets word, it makes an announcement.

It is possible that Johnson is still going through this process, hence why the NFL has no information in front of them.

From the time the league announces disciplinary action, the player has five days to appeal.

@Tim_McManus Does Heremans move to tackle to replace Johnson or do we look for tackle help elsewhere? — Nick Ellis (@Nick_Ellis_) July 3, 2014

Like most, I think Allen Barbre will play right tackle if Johnson is suspended. LeSean McCoy suggested as much when asked about the situation.

“That would suck to lose him for that many games, but the good thing [is] we have Allen Barbre,” McCoy said. “Barbre is a sure veteran backup who we gave some money to because we know he can play. And if he has to come in here and step in and play, we’re confident with him.”

It’s nice to have a player like Herremans that you can kick outside in a pinch, but he’s been moved back and forth a bunch over the last several years. I think at this point in his career, you leave him inside.

I’m sure they will be keeping an eye out for additional O-line help, especially when teams begin trimming their rosters.

@Tim_McManus think Eagles could get #DionJ95 at a discount now with the 4 game susp? Would they still want him? Trade? — Alec Hades Morrell (@I4ades) July 3, 2014

Have a feeling I’ll be getting a lot of these tweets in the coming days.

A little crazy, first off, that the No. 3 and No.4 pick of the 2013 draft could be suspended within a week of each other, right? Even crazier if both ended up on the Eagles’ roster.

Jordan definitely has some fans inside the NovaCare walls — including Chip Kelly — and we heard the buzz earlier this offseason about the Eagles and Dolphins exploring the possibility of a trade. Not going to rule out a Kelly-Jordan reunion at some point, but I’ll bet against a trade going down. They’re not all that easy to pull off in this league.