After Trent Williams reveals he had cancer, Redskins have a lot of questions to answer
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Trent Williams’ holdout and trade request make a lot more sense now that he revealed what happened. And it’s impossible to side with the Washington Redskins.
Williams revealed he had cancer in an interview with Washington media, via JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington. He said it was a rare tissue cancer DSFP, according to NBC Sports Washington. It started with a growth on his head six years ago, and the team said at that time that the growth was minor.
[Watch live local and primetime NFL games free with the Yahoo Sports app]
Williams said when the growth was removed, the cancer was weeks away from reaching his brain.
There had been stories that Williams’ distrust of the Washington medical staff was a big part of his holdout, which ended just this week. It was unusual when Williams didn’t practice Wednesday and it was reported that his helmet didn’t fit comfortably.
Now it all makes sense. It’s a frightening story. And another horrible look for the Redskins.
Trent Williams: ‘There’s no trust’
If you blamed Williams for holding out until after the trade deadline had passed, you might want to rethink that.
Williams wants more guaranteed money. He said in the meeting with the Washington media, via Finlay, that it would be crazy for him to play without guaranteed money on his deal. He also said that seeing Alex Smith suffer a devastating injury affected him. As does his distrust of the medical staff, adding “we haven’t had the best history here with medical stuff,” via Finlay. Smith and running back Derrius Guice dealt with setbacks after surgery due to infections in the past year.
It’s understandable why Williams is wary of the organization.
“There’s no trust,” Williams said, via Finlay.
Williams had cancer removed
Williams thought it was a cyst, and when he went to get it removed he found out it was much more serious. Williams said after the initial diagnosis he hadn’t worried about it.
“I was told it was something minor, so I didn't really question it,” Williams said, via NBC Sports Washington. "The lump continued to grow over the years, and it was concerning. But there was no pain involved.
"If I'm getting told by various people who I put my career in the hands of telling me that I'm fine, then I'm fine. That's how I looked at it."
Williams said in the two weeks he was in a Chicago hospital for surgery, none of his teammates visited him.
Williams said he didn’t blame Daniel Snyder, the team’s owner. But this latest story is another bad look for a Redskins franchise that has had its share of negative stories lately.
Redskins request independent review
Washington released a brief statement on Thursday afternoon, in which it called for an independent review of the medical care given to Williams.
“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,” Washington said in a statement, via the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. “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.”
– – – – – – –
Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
More from Yahoo Sports:
