Philadelphia Eagles face backlash for handling of Jalen Hurts blood clotting issue

The Philadelphia Eagles are facing intensifying criticism for how the team handled a major health complication involving its star quarterback, who the Eagles announced will miss the rest of the season due to a potentially fatal blood clotting condition.

Hurts, who won a Super Bowl MVP award with the Eagles in 2025, initially suffered a calf injury during a game against the Los Angeles Rams on Oct. 4.

After telling Eagles staff about the injury during a practice the following week, Hurts traveled to London where the team was slated to play the Jaguars that Sunday.

Hurts was seen by a specialist in London who diagnosed him with a left calf superficial vein thrombosis, according to the Associated Press, and Hurts was allowed to play against Jacksonville and fly home to the U.S. afterward.

Hurts was notably kept awake for 36 hours before the London game, reportedly for fear sleep could worsen his condition.

The Eagles signal caller threw for 220 yards and a touchdown in Philadelphia’s 19-17 loss to the Jaguars that day.

In a statement on Monday, Hurts’s agent said the star quarterback underwent extensive testing once he returned to the United States that revealed a more serious blood clotting issue in his lungs that will require blood thinners to treat.

A number of medical experts have posted a steady stream of videos on social media in the hours since explaining it is extremely dangerous for athletes to play contact sports while taking blood thinners given the high risk of internal bleeding, particularly in the head.

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni deflected questions from reporters on Monday about why Hurts was allowed to play against Jacksonville and fly home with the team despite his condition.

“I’m not a medical expert,” Sirianni said. “I lean on our guys in all those situations. I’m a football coach. I lean on our medical experts in every situation. I have full trust and full faith in them. It’s not just me that has major care for our players. It’s them, as well.”

The Eagles handling of Hurts condition is being met with widespread condemnation from the club’s fans and sports medicine experts.

“The Eagles have a lot of questions to answer,” said the former ESPN anchor and sports media pundit Trey Wingo in a video posted to social media.

“The Eagles are scared as hell because they might have cost this kid his life and could have cost him his damn career,” said former NFL tight end and commentator Shannon Sharpe during a recent episode of his podcast.

“Jalen Hurts is a friend of mine and I’ve got a ton of respect for him, so his health should be the most important part of this conversation,” said analyst Marcus Spears on ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown. “But I want to know how did Jalen Hurts get from a superficial blood clot in his leg to blood clots in his lungs and played a football game in between and flew over to London in that time.”

Hurts is currently on a five-year deal with the Eagles worth more than $200 million, including nearly $180 million in guaranteed money.