Importance Score: 7 / 100 🟠
Donald Trump welcomed the Philadelphia Eagles, Super Bowl champions, to the White House. Several players, including quarterback Jalen Hurts, opted to forgo the celebration.
Eagles’ White House Visit: Notable Absences
A White House official, speaking anonymously, stated that Hurts and other players cited scheduling conflicts as the cause for their absence from the event.
Trump Praises Absent Quarterback
Despite the quarterback’s absence, Trump lauded Hurts as a “terrific guy and terrific player” who delivered “one stellar performance after another” during the Eagles’ championship pursuit.
“The Eagles have turned out to be an incredible team, an incredible group,” Trump remarked during the event.
Optional Attendance: Team Culture
In April, Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie emphasized that attending the White House event was not mandatory for players.
“Our culture is that these are optional things,” Lurie commented. “If you want to enjoy this, come along and we’ll have a great time and if you don’t, it is totally an optional thing.”
Key Players Missing from Ceremony
NBC Sports Philadelphia reported that other Eagles players not present at Monday’s ceremony included:
- AJ Brown
- DeVonta Smith
- Jalen Carter
- Jordan Davis
- Brandon Graham
Past White House Tensions
The Eagles were uninvited to the White House in 2018, following their previous Super Bowl victory. Several players expressed intentions to boycott amid disputes over anthem protests within the NFL. Trump, then serving his first term as president, criticized players who knelt during the anthem to protest racial injustice.
At the time, Trump expressed on social media that the Eagles were at odds “with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country.”
Hurts’ Ambiguous Response
When questioned by a reporter at the Time magazine gala about his participation in the White House visit, Hurts responded with an awkward “um” and a prolonged pause before departing.
Saquon Barkley’s Visit and Rebuttal
The Eagles’ star running back, Saquon Barkley, visited Trump at Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey and accompanied the president on Air Force One to Washington.
“He loved it,” Trump commented on Barkley’s flight on the presidential airplane. “He’s a great young guy and an incredible football player. Saquon had a season for the ages, running behind the most powerful offensive line in the NFL,” Trump added.
Barkley addressed criticism on social media earlier Monday regarding his interaction with Trump, noting that he has also golfed with Barack Obama.
“Maybe I just respect the office, not a hard concept to understand,” Barkley posted on X.
Sports World’s Response to Trump
While Trump’s initial term in office faced significant criticism from athletes like LeBron James and Megan Rapinoe, there has been minimal opposition from the sports community during his second term.
In February, Trump made history as the first sitting US president to attend the Super Bowl, receiving a warm reception from several players, including the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.
Traditional White House Invitations
Teams clinching major championships are traditionally invited to the White House to commemorate their victory with the president. However, during Trump’s first term, several teams were either not invited or explicitly stated their refusal to attend if invited. These teams included the NBA’s Golden State Warriors and the United States Women’s National Team following their triumph at the 2019 Women’s World Cup.