Getty Former Eagles special-teams captain Chris Maragos was a two-time Super Bowl champion.
In one of the most closely-watched medical malpractice cases in history, Chris Maragos was awarded $43.5 million after winning a civil case against his doctors. The two-time Super Bowl champion had claimed his medical team failed to properly treat a meniscus tear and advanced his rehab unnecessarily which caused further damage to the knee.
Maragos, a former special-teams captain for the Philadelphia Eagles, had Super Bowl teammates Nick Foles, Jordan Hicks, and Trey Burton testify on his behalf during the trial. A jury ruled that renowned orthopedic surgeons Dr. James Bradley and Rothman Orthopaedics were responsible for prematurely ending his football career. Maragos retired in 2019 at the age of 32.
“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 on February 13, one day after the Eagles lost Super Bowl LVII. “While I live in constant pain and will never get back on the field, I hope this decision sends a message to teams’ medical staffs that players are people, not just contracts.”
“Dear Athletes, You’re not Alone.”
The initial injury occurred on October 12, 2017, during a game against the Carolina Panthers. It was diagnosed as a torn right knee posterior cruciate ligament and Dr. Bradley performed surgery on Maragos’ knee. Then, in May 2018, an MRI revealed that Maragos was still suffering from a “persistent partial tear” despite the medical staff clearing him for exercise.
Dr. Bradley was found to be 67% negligent ($29.2 million) and Rothman Orthopaedics was found to be 33% negligent ($14.3 million), according to court documents. Maragos was represented by Peter J. Flowers and Frank V. Cesarone of Meyers & Flowers, along with Dion G. Rassias and Jill Johnson of The Beasley Firm, a Philadelphia-based law firm.
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