PHILADELPHIA — Independent medical experts will review how Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts’ blood clots were handled. They will report their findings to the NFL and the NFL Players Association as part of an upcoming joint review, according to the league.
The NFL gave the update in response to questions from U.S. Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware. In October she wrote to Commissioner Roger Goodell asking what happened with Hurts and how the league handles blood clots. Her office released the league’s response Friday.
Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president of communications, public affairs and health policy, said the experts will be agreed on by both the league and the union under the collective bargaining agreement. Miller said the league has tracked clotting disorders among players every season for at least ten years and shares that data with the union. He added that after the review, the NFL and NFLPA will consider next steps, including whether new league-wide guidance is needed.
The review has not formally started, because the two sides are still working out its terms. Under the CBA, the neutral physicians have 60 days after they are selected to issue a written report, and both sides must act on their recommendations. The NFLPA has not invoked Article 39, which would launch a formal union investigation into club medical care. Some of that article’s guidelines will still be used in this review.
How it unfolded
Hurts, 28, was first diagnosed with a superficial blood clot in London before the Eagles’ Week 5 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He played in the game, flew home with the team and practiced fully the next Wednesday. A follow-up ultrasound that evening showed the clot had moved.
The Eagles placed Hurts on injured reserve Oct. 17. Two days later, the team and his agent, Nicole Lynn, announced that he had deep vein thrombosis and blood clots in both lungs. They said he was clinically stable. He is on blood thinners, which rule out any contact activity, and he is expected to miss the rest of the 2026 season.
On Friday, Blunt Rochester thanked the league for the update and urged it to use its platform to raise awareness about blood clots. Miller said the league would welcome the chance to support those efforts.
