Redskins Request NFL Review Of Trent Williams’ Cancer Scare

The Washington Redskins officially requested that the NFL review the medical care given to LT Trent Williams, who told reporters on Thursday that he no longer trusts the organization following a cancer scare that he says was misdiagnosed by the team. 

Here’s the statement from the Redskins:

“The Washington Redskins have requested that the NFL’s Management Council convene a joint committee with the NFLPA to review the medical records and the medical care given to Trent Williams. We have requested this review under the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement that provides for an independent third party review of any NFL player’s medical care. The Redskins continue to prioritize the health and well-being of our players and staff. Due to healthcare and privacy regulations, we are unable to comment further at this time. We look forward to the joint committee’s results.”

Williams mentioned that it’s “hard to look past” all that happened after he first reported a growth on his scalp six years ago. 

“There’s no trust there,” Williams said, via ESPN.com. “There are some things that happened that are hard to look past.”

Williams explained that the growth continued to get bigger in recent years and ultimately turned out to be cancerous. 

“It was cancer. I had a tumor removed from my skull — attached to my skull — it got pretty serious for a second,” Williams said. “I was told some scary things from the doctors. It was definitely nothing to play with. It was one of those things that will change your outlook on life.”

According to Williams, the Redskins told him it was nothing to worry about and he would be fine. 

“I mean the lump continued to grow over the years. It was concerning, but there was no pain involved, and if I’m being told by the very people I put my career in the hands of, people are telling me I’m fine, I’m fine,” Williams said. “That’s how I looked at it.”

Williams later visited with a specialist and they were able to catch before the situation got worse. 

“We literally caught it within weeks of metastasizing through to my brain to my skull,” Williams said. “Extracting it was the only thing they could do. Doing radiology on it would have put a cap on my life. I think 15 years was the most I would have had after I started chemo. So I had to cut it out.”

Wiliams was a popular name at the trade deadline after informing the Redskins before their June minicamp that he no longer wanted to play for them. However, Washington told teams he wasn’t available and the deadline came and went without a deal. 

“I mean, when you give them 48 hours to strike a deal it probably isn’t going to happen,” Wiliams said. “I just felt like that was done to embarrass me, try to make it feel like, ‘Ain’t nobody want you; you’re not good enough for us to trade for.’ I felt like that was the play more so than to get me moved.”

Williams reported to the team on Wednesday, but failed a physical due to discomfort from wearing his helmet. 

Williams, 31, is a former first-round pick of the Redskins back in 2010. He currently in the fourth year of his five-year, $66 million contract that includes $43.25 million guaranteed and stands to make base salaries of $11 million and $12.5 million over the next two years of the agreement.

In 2018, Williams started 13 games for the Redskins.  Pro Football Focus rated Williams as the No. 21 tackle out of 80 qualifying players.  

We’ll have more regarding Williams as the news is available.