The NFL has apparently decided that the Philadelphia Eagles did nothing wrong in their handling of quarterback Jalen Hurts’ potentially life-threatening blood clotting condition.
Football fans, however, aren’t nearly as convinced.
As reported by The Athletic, the NFL concluded that the process surrounding Hurts’ clearance to play in Week 5 despite a diagnosed blood clot in his leg “was handled appropriately,” citing a league source.
That conclusion has sparked intense backlash, particularly given that Hurts, the Eagles’ Super Bowl MVP-winning quarterback, subsequently developed multiple blood clots in his lungs and has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Hurts is undergoing treatment with blood thinners after doctors discovered the potentially fatal condition. The Eagles and his agent have expressed optimism that the quarterback will make a full recovery.
But the circumstances leading up to that diagnosis have prompted serious questions about how Philadelphia’s medical staff handled the situation — questions that the NFL’s reported conclusion has done little to settle.
Per The Hill, Hurts initially suffered a calf injury during an Oct. 4 game against the Los Angeles Rams. After reporting discomfort to team personnel the following week, he traveled with the Eagles to London for their game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
While in London, Hurts was examined by a specialist who diagnosed him with superficial vein thrombosis in his left calf. Despite that diagnosis, he was cleared to play against Jacksonville and to fly home with the team.
In one particularly unusual detail, Hurts was reportedly kept awake for approximately 36 hours before the game over concerns that sleeping could worsen his condition.
The quarterback ultimately played against Jacksonville, throwing for 220 yards and a touchdown in a 19-17 loss.
But subsequent testing after his return to the United States revealed a far more serious medical problem — blood clots in his lungs.
The situation has raised concerns about the potential dangers associated with blood clots, particularly for professional athletes. Treatment with blood thinners also presents significant risks in a contact sport like football because of the possibility of serious internal bleeding.
As The Hill pointed out, those concerns have been echoed by several prominent sports commentators, including former ESPN anchor Trey Wingo, who declared that the Eagles “have a lot of questions to answer.”
Do you believe the NFL handled Jalen Hurts’ health situation appropriately?
Former NFL tight end Shannon Sharpe was considerably more forceful, suggesting on his podcast that the Eagles’ handling of Hurts could have jeopardized both the quarterback’s life and his career.
ESPN analyst Marcus Spears also questioned the sequence of events, saying, “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.”
And those concerns have hardly been limited to professional commentators.
The Athletic’s report that the NFL found the Eagles’ handling of the situation appropriate drew angry responses from football fans questioning how the league could reach that conclusion given Hurts’ subsequent diagnosis.
@jjones9 @TheAthletic Need a 3rd party process.
This is like the police investigating themselves
— BKHockeyTalk (@BKHockeyTalk) October 20, 2026
One biting response to The Athletic’s post called out the need for an independent investigator.
“This is like the police investigating themselves,” the user wrote.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, meanwhile, defended his reliance on the team’s medical personnel when pressed Monday about the decision to allow Hurts to play.
“I’m not a medical expert,” Sirianni said. “I lean on our guys in all those situations.”
Sirianni also expressed confidence in the medical staff, emphasizing that its members share his concern for the health and safety of Philadelphia’s players.
For now, the encouraging news is that Hurts is expected to recover. But the NFL’s reported assessment of how the situation was handled has clearly failed to satisfy critics who believe the quarterback’s health should have taken precedence over his availability on game day.
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