Jalen Hurts’ season is officially done, taken out by multiple blood clots in his lungs, but despite the court of public opinion raging against them, the NFL is not punishing the Eagles for their approach to the whole ordeal. The league’s decision comes even after Hurts played a full game against the Jaguars with a superficial blood clot in his calf, only to be diagnosed with far more serious lung clots after missing the Panthers game.
The League’s Controversial Call
The NFL flat out determined the Eagles “handled appropriately” everything around Hurts’ blood clot situation, both in letting him play and how they managed the injury report before that Jaguars game. Talk about a bombshell, right? Reports flew around that Hurts stayed awake for 36 hours before playing in London because of his calf clot diagnosis, sparking major criticism of the Eagles. But The Athletic is reporting that was inaccurate. Turns out, Hurts, like the rest of the Eagles, stayed awake to keep their body clocks aligned with the U.S. time zone, and his hospital visit for treatment just tacked on more awake time. Crucially, The Athletic states he *did* sleep before the game and wasn’t told to stay awake because of the diagnosis itself.
NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller even chimed in, saying there was “considerable and uninformed speculation” yesterday in the reporting. And get this: NFL chief medical officer Alan Sills “forcefully defended” the Eagles. Because that critical detail about Hurts staying awake was clarified, the NFL found zero violations, nor did they find the Eagles messed up on injury report rules. Hurts was on the injury report for a calf injury two days before the Jaguars game but didn’t get a game designation because they expected him to play without limitations. He played the entire game, and the league says nothing more was needed. Wild.
Coach Sirianni Steps Up to Defend His Staff
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni faced the media Monday, right after Hurts was ruled out for the season, with conflicting reports flying everywhere. You know he had to stand up for his crew. “The health of our players is always at the forefront of our mind,” Sirianni said, jumping to his medical staff’s defense. He even pulled out the stats, pointing to the same doctors and trainers who helped 21 of their 22 starters be available for the Super Bowl, saying those are the “same guys today that deeply care about our guys, to help them.” While some folks wanted GM Howie Roseman or even a medical staff rep to answer questions, it looks like the Eagles’ version of events is exactly what the NFL is buying.
So, where does this leave the Eagles? With their star QB’s season cut short by a scary medical issue, and the league giving the team a pass, this whole thing puts a massive spotlight on every single move they make going forward. You can bet fans, both in Philly and across the league, will be watching closely as they figure out what’s next for the squad.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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