The Justin Herbert era likely has been launched by a misplaced medical needle, one that punctured the lung of starter Tyrod Taylor.
Chargers coach Anthony Lynn, possibly acting on advice of counsel, chose his words very carefully when talking about the error that sidelined Taylor last week and that will keep him out this week.
“I’m not angry at all,” Lynn told reporters on Wednesday, via Mark Maske of the Washington Post. “It happens, you know. Like I said, I can’t go into details about it. But it was a complication with the shot. No one’s perfect. . . . It happens. The doctor, I know he’s a good man. It’s just unfortunate.”
Chargers tight end Hunter Henry also spoke out in support of the team’s physicians.
“I still have faith in our medical staff,” Henry said. “Obviously this is an unfortunate event. It’s not good. I know none of us think it’s good at all. But we’re going to continue to move forward and I do have faith in them.”
That’s Henry’s prerogative. But here’s the thing — a needle doesn’t get jammed into a patient’s lung without some degree of incompetence when it comes to the insertion of the needle. Yes, accidents happen; however, negligence lays the foundation for many accidents that occur.
Plenty of bad outcomes in the medical setting happen for reasons unrelated to the skill or lack thereof of the medical professionals. This one, however, doesn’t fall into that category. Someone screwed up, and someone should be accountable for it, in order to keep it from happening again.