Five months later, Wells suffered a “serious and debilitating injury” to his Achilles that required a second surgery with a different orthopedic surgeon.
Wells accused his original surgeon, Dr. Gregory Berlet, a consultant to the Ohio State Athletic Department, of botching the tendon surgery in October, and misleading him to believe the surgery had been a success, according to the lawsuit filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.
Wells, who lives in Westerville, has been working as a football commentator on the radio while rehabilitating his repaired Achilles tendon in an attempt to regain his strength, speed and mobility, and ultimately return to the NFL, said his attorneys, Shannon Polk and Andy Kabat of Cleveland.
“Beanie went through a lot since his injury,” Polk said. “He’s going to keep fighting to try to get back into the league. And I assure you that Kabat and I are going to fight for Beanie — as long as it takes — to remedy what has now unfortunately become a legal dispute.”
Berlet and his lawyer did not respond to multiple phone calls and emails requesting comment.
Wells ended a three-year Ohio State career with 30 touchdowns and the team’s MVP award in 2008. He was drafted in the first round in 2009 by the Arizona Cardinals, for whom he gained 1,000 yards and scored 10 touchdowns in 2011. But he was hobbled by injuries and released in 2013.
Berlet, who is affiliated with the Orthopedic Foot & Ankle Center in Westerville, operated on Wells in October 2013. This past March 20, the surgeon reviewed an MRI image of the Achilles tendon and pronounced Wells “intact” and assured him that “everything looked good.”
But in his lawsuit, Wells accused Berlet of falsely representing the true condition of his Achilles tendon.
Berlet “concealed from Wells that his Achilles was not repaired or intact, but rather was structurally compromised and in danger of a complete rupture,” the lawsuit states.
Wells accused Berlet of medical malpractice for botching the surgery, and fraud for delivering a false diagnosis “with utter disregard and recklessness.”
Wells also sued the Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Center, OhioHealth Corp., Drs. Joshua Houser and Sriram Mannava, Riverside Radiology, and Columbus Radiology Corp.
According to the lawsuit, the defendants failed to provide “competent, safe and acceptable medical care and treatment, including surgical care, post-operative care, treatment and rehabilitation.”
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