Jalen Hurts Talks Skipping White House, President Trump Visit: 'They Had Fun'

Skipping the honorary White House visit has become controversial. The Philadelphia Eagles recently visited President Donald Trump, though several players, including Super Bowl LIX MVP Jalen Hurts, did not attend.

Three-time Pro Bowl Eagles wideout AJ Brown also skipped the visit to the White House.

Addressing the matter, Hurts said during a press conference on Tuesday that his reason for skipping the White House visit was purely apolitical.

"I wasn’t available," Hurts shared. 

Hurts' past side-eyeing at President Trump sparked talks that Hurts, along with numerous other Eagles players, was making a political statement by refusing to see Trump. Among the players who did attend, star running back Saquon Barkley appeared to get along very well with the U.S. President. 

UNITED STATES - APRIL 28: Running back Saquon Barkley, center, looks on, as President Donald Trump greets head coach Nick Sirianni, during a ceremony with the Philadelphia Eagles, winners of the 2025 Super Bowl, on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, April 28, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Jalen Hurts Skips White House (via Getty Images)

The White House relayed that a scheduling conflict arose with Hurts. The Eagles QB attended the Met Gala a week later.

"I don’t think that’s pertinent," Hurts added, regarding a scheduling conflict that kept him from seeing Trump. "Everyone who went and was available seemed to enjoy themselves."

In 2018, the Super Bowl-winning Eagles announced intentions to deliberately skip visiting Trump, which led to the president canceling the invite.

UNITED STATES - APRIL 28: President Donald Trump speaks as, from left, defense coordinator Vic Fangio, running back Saquon Barkley, and general manager Howie Roseman, look on, during a ceremony with the Philadelphia Eagles, winners of the 2025 Super Bowl, on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday, April 28, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

"I had a personal reason I was dealing with that day," A.J. Brown said. "It wasn’t about politics or who is in office or anything. I just had something personal going on with my family."

Devonta Smith, Darius Slay, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Brandon Graham, Josh Sweat, Jalen Carter and Zack Baun also missed the event.

Trump also attended Hurts' Super Bowl victory in New Orleans, against the Kansas City Chiefs, whom Trump chose, primarily because of Brittany Mahomes' support.

Should the Eagles repeat or win again before the end of Trump's presidency, it'll be hard for Hurts to skip out on another trip to the White House.

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