Taylor Lewan officially files lawsuit against Dr. James Andrews
The former Tennessee Titans left tackle claims a 2020 ACL repair surgery was performed incorrectly.
NASHVILLE — Tennessee Titans left tackle Taylor Lewan has named orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, Benjamin Sherman, D.O., Baptist Health Care, Inc., Baptist Medical Group, LLC, and the Andrews Institute ASC, LLC in a civil lawsuit for medical malpractice. This is according to copies of the original lawsuit filed in the First Judicial Circuit Court in Escambia County, Florida, obtained by A to Z Sports.
Lewan was lost for the remainder of Tennessee's 2022 season in Week 2 with a torn ACL. The Titans' three-time Pro Bowl lineman is taking legal action against Andrews, alleging that a 2020 surgical repair of Lewan's right ACL, suffered in Week 6 of that campaign, was done incorrectly, via the lawsuit. Tennessee released Lewan this Spring with a "failed physical" designation."
The nine-year NFL veteran announced that he was filing suit on an episode of his podcast, Bussin' With The Boys.
"I have had to file a lawsuit against the people and entities that are involved with my surgery from October of 2020," said Lewan. "But I wanted to take this opportunity on this podcast to let all of you know what's going on in my life."
Lewan struggled mightily when he returned for Tennessee in 2021, often suffering setbacks in the first year after his initial surgery.
One such instance was in pregame warm-ups before the Titans Week 2 overtime victory at Seattle, where Lewan practiced that week and dressed with the intention to play. The tackle went down about two hours before kickoff and was later ruled out before the game, thrusting reserve Ty Sambrailo into a last-second start. It took only one offensive snap this year in Buffalo for Lewan to again sustain a re-tearing of that same ACL and, again, be lost for a season.
The suit indicates that remedies being sought by Lewan include "a trial by jury and a judgment for whatever damages in excess of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) the Court finds Plaintiff to be entitled, plus cost, interest, and other such relief as the Court deems proper."
Lewan's legal representation filed a petition for a statute of limitations extension in medical malpractice action on Oct. 25, as they were set to expire two years to the day of the tackle's first surgery.
“We cannot comment on individual patients or pending litgations,” Christian Garman of Andrews Institute of Orthopedic and Sports Medicine responded in a statement Thursday.
Lewan was drafted by Tennessee 11th overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. Titans general manager Jon Robinson signed the former first-round pick to a five-year, $80 million extension ahead of the 2018 season. Lewan missed 35 of a possible 82 games due to injury and a four-game PED suspension over his last five seasons with the Titans.
Lewan, 31, is currently an unrestricted free agent.
Featured Image: USA TODAY Sports, George Walker
