Former Vikings DE Sharrif Floyd Filing Lawsuit Against Dr. James Andrews

Sharrif Floyd allegedly suffered permanent nerve and muscle damage in his right leg after undergoing knee surgery at the Andrews Institute in September 2016.
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Former Vikings defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd will file a $180-million lawsuit against noted orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, the Andrews Institute for Orthopedic Surgery and others in the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court for Orange County Florida on Tuesday, according to Floyd’s lawyer Brad Sohn.

Floyd’s once-promising career is now over.

The suit alleges that Floyd, the No. 23 pick in the 2013 NFL draft, was told by Andrews that he’d undergo a minor arthroscopic knee surgery in September 2016, intended to shelf him for 3–4 weeks. Instead, the suit alleges, Floyd underwent a far more significant procedure at the Andrews Institute. According to the lawsuit, Floyd suffered permanent nerve and muscle damage in his right leg as a result of the surgery.

According to the suit, the Andrew Institute negligently administered a pain blocker that led to the muscle and nerve damage. In the aftermath, the Vikings placed Floyd on the non-football injury list, which was the subject of an NFLPA grievance. That grievance centered on the payment of Floyd’s $6.7-million option for 2017, the final year of his rookie deal. The Vikings exercised that option in May 2016.

It’s believed that the team and Floyd have engaged in settlement talks on the grievance. The related $180-million lawsuit is based on what Floyd would’ve made over the course of a longer career as a pro football player.

“We believe that if Sharrif had not been the victim of the medical negligence we allege, he would’ve been paid commensurate with some of the top players at his position, if not some of the top defensive players in football,” Sohn said over the phone on Monday night.

The figure is based on what top contemporary players at Floyd’s position would make over the course of their careers.


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Albert Breer
ALBERT BREER

Albert Breer is a senior writer covering the NFL for Sports Illustrated, delivering the biggest stories and breaking news from across the league. He has been on the NFL beat since 2005 and joined SI in 2016. Breer began his career covering the New England Patriots for the MetroWest Daily News and the Boston Herald from 2005 to '07, then covered the Dallas Cowboys for the Dallas Morning News from 2007 to '08. He worked for The Sporting News from 2008 to '09 before returning to Massachusetts as The Boston Globe's national NFL writer in 2009. From 2010 to 2016, Breer served as a national reporter for NFL Network. In addition to his work at Sports Illustrated, Breer regularly appears on NBC Sports Boston, 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, FS1 with Colin Cowherd, The Rich Eisen Show and The Dan Patrick Show. A 2002 graduate of Ohio State, Breer lives near Boston with his wife, a cardiac ICU nurse at Boston Children's Hospital, and their three children.