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Former Philadelphia Eagles captain Chris Maragos was rewarded $43.5 million as part of a lawsuit accusing doctors of medical malpractice in relation to a career-ending knee injury, CNN reports.
The Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas jury found orthopedic surgeon James Bradley and Rothman Orthopedics to be negligent in relation to the former NFL safety, which forced his career ending prematurely. The court ruled that Bradley was 67% negligent ($29.2 million) and Rothman Orthopedics was 33% negligent ($14.3 million), documents obtained by CNN confirmed.
“This case and this jury may have changed the course of history by now forcing these team doctors and trainers to stop worrying about when a player might return to play and start thinking about the next 50 years of a player’s life,” said Maragos’ lawyer, Dion G. Rassias, in a statement obtained by CNN.
Maragos suffered a meniscus tear in Week 6 of the 2017 NFL season, which concluded with the Eagles winning their lone Super Bowl in franchise history. Representatives for Maragos said that Bradley and Rothman Orthopedics failed to properly treat the injury and the decision to advance his rehabilitation caused further knee damage.
Bradley performed surgery on Maragos and the recovery process was overseen by Rothman Orthopedics, which his representatives claim was advanced too soon despite an MRI showing that his knee still had a partial tear, causing the "premature end" of his NFL career.
“On Sunday, my team played in the Super Bowl, and I could only watch and wonder whether I could have been out there with them had I received proper medical care,” Maragos said in a statement obtained by CNN, referencing the Eagles' Super Bowl LVII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Maragos was a two-time Super Bowl champion, having won his first as a member of the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII. The Wisconsin native recorded 93 tackles, one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and one defensive touchdown during his nine-year NFL career.