Bills wide receiver Jordan Matthews is heading into free agency confident in his abilities.
He does not share that confidence in the Eagles’ medical staff.
Via Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News, Matthews said during an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio that “two really bad diagnoses” by the Eagles’ doctors caused lingering knee and ankle damage that limited his effectiveness once he was traded to the Bills. He had surgery in December to fix those problems, among the array of injuries including a broken thumb and a chest injury he dealt with last year.
“I think the worst and most frustrating thing about the whole situation was, when I got to Buffalo, I was still dealing with the things that I had to get surgery on,” Matthews said. “But I had two really bad diagnoses on the knee and the ankle, so going into the trade, I thought they were both things that were going to heal on their own. But once I got around Buffalo’s doctors, they got me in touch with the right people and then I got really good feedback.
“We ended up finding out there were other things that I was dealing with, so the thumb was definitely upsetting, the chest was upsetting. But what’s crazy was when they ended up doing my surgery on my knee, they actually told me that, ‘Man, it’s a good thing that you didn’t play more games, you didn’t practice more, because you needed to come here and get this procedure done as soon as possible.’ So, if anything, it was a blessing in disguise. I don’t regret any of the times that happen. I think it honestly has just made me a stronger person, it’s going to make me a better player.”
Players always have the option to get second opinions outside the team context, and Matthews’ case illustrates the need for that.
Matthews only played in 10 games last year, catching just 25 passes after he was acquired in the deal for cornerback Ronald Darby.