During Wednesday morning's episode of "First Take" on ESPN, broadcast personality Stephen A. Smith criticized Lane Johnson's decision to retire in order to focus on his mental health. Not in the offseason. ...
Four games into the 2026 season, a dude that has been in the league forever, sits back and says 'I need to focus on my mental health,'" Smith said. This rant regarding Johnson's retirement decision went viral on social media, and many prominent figures around the NFL world called out Smith over his insensitive stance. Smith walked back his statement later in the show, saying he would "never make light of mental health issues." Smith attempted to explain his statement during his latest edition of "The Stephen A.
Smith Show." "People misconstrued me minimizing mental health. I would never do that," Smith said. "When I was talking about Lane Johnson earlier this morning, I wasn't talking about him and mental health.
I was talking about how the Eagles, how chaotic their situation is can drive [him] to it." The Eagles will face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars in an international matchup in London this coming Sunday.
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