During an Oct. 2 game against the Browns, Washington linebacker Su’a Cravens suffered a concussion while attempting to tackle Cleveland running back Isaiah Crowell. Now, Cravens and his team appear to be having trouble settling on the exact severity of his brain injury.
Cravens reportedly made a startling announcement in a video on his Snapchat account today. Via Fox Sports:
“Due to my concussion my eyes have lost the memory to keep track of moving objects, so I have to wear [glasses] for the rest of my life.”
The quote can’t currently be found in Cravens’s Snapchat story but it has also been reported by Yahoo and Sporting News. As a matter of fact, while his account is still active, his entire Snapchat story is now gone (it wasn’t while writing this post). Cravens had said in a separate clip, “So I had to buy these glasses and I’ll be wearing them, for a very long time. Thanks, concussions.”
On Instagram, Cravens showed off a new pair of Gucci frames. “Good morning, everybody,” he said. “I just got back from the doctor. Notice anything different?” In the caption, he writes: “The road to recovery starts off with a fresh pair of prescription glasses I have to wear from now on... Sounds great! #httr.”
There are two assertions (reportedly) being made by Cravens. One is that his eyes have “lost the memory to keep track of moving objects,” requiring the permanent use of glasses, which is terrifying and makes you wonder whether he would even be able to play football again. The second—that his injury has necessitated he wear glasses “from now on”—is a common treatment for people who have suffered concussions. For instance, Hillary Clinton wore specially designed glasses to a Senate hearing in 2013 after suffering a concussion caused by fainting. (Su’a Cravens isn’t fit to be president!)
In any event, later in the day, JP Finlay of CSN Mid-Atlantic cited a “source close to the situation” as saying that there’s “zero truth” to Cravens’s claim that his eyes can no longer track moving objects. The source is anonymous, but let’s ask the question: Who in this situation would have incentive to conceal the permanently debilitating post-concussion symptoms of a highly productive second-round draft pick?
We’ve reached out to Cravens’s team for comment, and will update if we hear back.