Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts
Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
The NFL is apparently unhappy with how the Philadelphia Eagles have gone about handling the fallout from the Jalen Hurts blood clots saga.
More than two weeks on from Hurts’ participation in the Eagles-Jaguars game in London, which he played in despite having already been diagnosed with “superficial” blood clots that were deemed stable, most of the critical questions regarding the situation have remained unanswered. In the week after Hurts played the London game, he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis and multiple blood clots in his lungs, the treatment for which will likely keep him out for the remainder of the season.
Since then, there’s been an obvious public interest in the Eagles’ medical process, which determined Hurts was in a suitable condition to play against the Jaguars. Those questions have, so far, been met with terse responses from the only person the Eagles have made available to answer for the matter: head coach Nick Sirianni. The team has failed to make anyone from its medical staff available, nor has it made other executives, like general manager Howie Roseman, available.
Meanwhile, the NFL and NFLPA announced a joint investigation into the matter, a move that sees the union choosing not to exercise its right to an independent investigation, at least for now.
The lack of transparency has kept the Hurts story in the headlines for well over a week now. And despite publicly endorsing the team’s medical process, the NFL seems frustrated with how the Eagles have handled Hurts’ situation from a messaging standpoint. According to a report by Marcus Hayes in The Philadelphia Inquirer, a “well-connected source” described the NFL as “furious” over how the Eagles have handled the fallout surrounding Hurts’ situation.
Publicly, the league is suggesting the Eagles followed all proper medical protocols. At a press conference before this weekend’s Paris game, the NFL’s chief medical officer, Allen Sills, defended the Eagles’ process.
“The notion that there are external factors or that any of our physicians would put a player in harm’s way — that’s nonsense,” Sills said. “I think there was incredible vigilance, there was conservative care, state-of-the-art imaging that was done in London. And, as far as the timing and the decision-making, I have great confidence in that and believe that everyone acted with an abundance of caution.”
The team, however, has notput anyone in a position of authority to defend those claims, which has led to speculation that it could be hiding something. When paired with the fact that the NFLPA has chosen the less-aggressive pathway of a joint investigation, which will almost assuredly produce results tailored to the league’s version of events, and the NFL’s less-than-sterling record on player safety, it’s no wonder why the league is upset with how the Eagles have handled things.
For all we know, the Eagles’ medical staff handled everything exactly by the book. In fact, that should be assumed unless evidence to the contrary shows otherwise. But by not making anyone available to speak with the media, the Eagles have created an informational void the NFL isn’t happy about. Hence, Jalen Hurts is still a major story two weeks after he played that game in London.