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Ex-Browns receiver David Bell files $300M lawsuit over career-ending surgery

Bell alleges he was assured the procedure would be 'relatively low-risk,' and would resolve his residual pain

Published Oct 16, 2026  •  2 minute read

David Bell of the Cleveland Browns warms up prior a game in 2024. Getty Images

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Former Cleveland Browns wide receiver David Bell has filed a multi-million-dollar lawsuit over the treatment he received during and after an operation that he says killed his career and nearly killed him.

Bell, 25, is suing Jefferson Health entities and more than a dozen other defendants, including surgeon Dr. William Meyers, for more than $300 million in damages, The Athletic reported.

He claimed in the lawsuit filed Thursday in a Philadelphia County court, that “core muscle repair” surgery ahead of the 2025 season was intended to resolve lingering pain from a previous hip injury.

Bell’s attorneys Brad Sohn and Nathan Werksman allege that the defendants “participated in a financial scheme that induced Bell to undergo surgery based on misrepresented pelvic MRI findings,” according to a news release.

The filing goes on to accuse Meyers and radiologist Adam Zoga of duping Bell with a “bogus MRI” result from May 19, 2025, that led to the surgery.

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Bell alleges he was assured the procedure, also called the Meyers Repair, would be “relatively low-risk,” and would resolve his residual pain.

“Tragically, Bell awoke from surgery to learn that he had narrowly escaped death due to a vascular injury caused by Defendant Meyers slicing through his femoral artery, necessitating emergency ambulance transport to Thomas Jefferson Hospital and requiring emergency vascular reconstruction,” the lawsuit states.

While repairing and a grafting of the artery saved Bell, it ultimately came at the cost of his career, his lawyers say.

The lawsuit goes on to state the defendants fraudulently touted the “dubious” procedure in what was essentially a grand financial scheme and the surgery, “never needed to happen in the first place,” Sohn said in a press conference.

Sohn also clarified that the Browns are not a part of the lawsuit.

“They have only been a source of support and the wonderful team at (University Hospitals) was actually a key part of David’s recovery,” the lawyer wrote on X.

Jefferson Health issued a statement to the Athletic, saying it “categorically denies these allegations,” noting the physician who performed the procedure is not employed by them.

“The surgery that forms the basis of the complaint was not performed at Jefferson,” the spokesperson added.

“As acknowledged in the pleadings, Jefferson provided life-saving treatment to the patient and will vigorously defend its care and reputation.”

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Bell, who was a third-round pick of the Browns in the 2022 NFL Draft, spent three seasons in Cleveland, recording 41 receptions for 408 yards and three touchdowns across 32 games.

He suffered the season-ending hip injury in September 2024.

Bell was placed on the non-football injury list to start the 2025 season and he retired that October.

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