From Blood Clots to the NFL

Former Husker Achieves Dream Thanks to Expert Care

This past May, former Husker football player Javin Wright was at an Airbnb in downtown Phoenix, waiting. He was surrounded by his closest family and friends, hoping that his hard work for the past 20 years had paid off. Then, he finally heard the news. It was something he had been waiting for since he was 6 years old.

He had made it. He was in the NFL.

This step in his journey wasn’t always guaranteed. After experiencing several medical setbacks in college, Javin says he now appreciates football with a deeper understanding.

“I think it’s the best game for life,” Javin says. “People think it’s just a brute game, it’s a gladiator game – which it is, and I love that part of it – but the lessons that come with it, and the way that it shows you a reflection of yourself off the field, that’s just a small version of why I love the game.”

For as long as he can remember, Javin has loved football. His father, Toby Wright, was a former Husker and NFL safety, and he taught him the game. After high school, Javin followed in his father’s footsteps and signed with the Nebraska Cornhuskers in 2019. When a knee injury cut his season short in 2020, he spent the year working on recovery.

In May of 2021, after he had flown home to Arizona, he noticed pain and swelling in his lower right leg. He was diagnosed with a blood clot, and doctors started him on a blood thinner for three months. He came back to Nebraska just in time to join the team for fall camp.

Javin played in two home games on special teams that fall, and he was scheduled to fly to Oklahoma for their fourth game of the season on September 18. At the start of that week, he noticed some pain in his leg, but he didn’t think much of it. During a light workout on the day the team was scheduled to leave, Javin knew there was a problem.

“I couldn’t jump, or run. It was weird,” he explains. “I physically couldn’t jump. I was really trying, and I couldn’t.”

A repeat duplex scan revealed an occlusive thrombus, a clot that was restricting blood flow in several of his veins. Dr. Lonnie Albers, director of athletic medicine at the University of Nebraska, reached out to interventional radiologist Dr. Michael Budler.

Dr. Budler performed a venogram and saw that the whole length of Javin’s femoral vein was almost entirely blocked, from his knee up through his thigh.

“Blood thinners don’t always clear the clot completely, and that’s exactly what was happening to him,” Dr. Budler explains. Dr. Budler has been doing mechanical thrombectomies since 2000, and he felt that using this minimally invasive surgical approach would be a good option for Javin.

“If we didn’t get the clot out, there was the risk that he could have post-thrombotic syndrome later on, which would mean chronic swelling and pain in his leg,” Dr. Budler says. “Basically, he would not be able to have a career playing football if we weren’t aggressive with this.”

Dr. Budler was also concerned that if the clot wasn’t removed, Javin could face the possibility of a pulmonary embolism, which could be fatal.

Javin went into surgery that day. Dr. Budler made a small incision behind his right knee, and using a vacuum-like device called the Penumbra Lightning Indigo System, he was able to remove the clot. Within an hour, Javin was out of surgery. His dad, who had caught a flight as soon as he heard the news, was there to meet him when he got out.

The results were noticeable immediately. Before Javin left the surgical room, the swelling had gone down, and he was feeling less pain.

Javin says he appreciated the care he received. “The staff treated me really well, and Dr. Budler, he’s really good at his stuff,” he says.

Because he still had to be on blood thinners for six months, Javin had to sit out the rest of the 2021 season. He returned in 2022, starting his college football career over as a 22-year-old freshman. Although his path had been difficult, he says that first time back on the field was incredible.

“It was amazing,” he says. “It was a long time coming. I hadn’t played football in so long, and it was kind of like a mental reset.”

Javin continued to work hard in 2022 and 2023, amid changes to his position and coaching staff.

In 2024, Javin’s mettle was tested yet again. His blood clots had returned, and he had to sit out for the first four games of the season. Javin consulted with Dr. Budler and Dr. Stephen Moll, a thrombosis expert who had helped Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Trey Smith with blood clots.

They came up with a treatment plan, and Javin was able to return that season.

He went on to finish an impressive college football career, ranking fifth in the Big Ten Conference for tackles his senior year.

In May, Javin signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He’ll join four fellow Huskers on the team – John Bullock, Nash Hutmacher, Ben Scott and Henry Lutovsky.

“When I got the news, I was so excited,” he says. “When Tampa called me, and then I talked to the coaches, it kind of lit a spark in me, like this was meant to be – this was my destiny.”

Through all of his health challenges, Javin says his focus remained on one thing.

Dr. Budler says it has been an honor getting to watch Javin’s journey. “He’s overcome more obstacles than most could imagine, and we’re incredibly proud to have played even a small role in helping him achieve his dream. We’re excited to watch him compete at the next level and enjoy a long, successful career in the NFL. It’s truly special, and I couldn’t be happier for him.”

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