When we think of NFL players, we focus on their on-field prowess, but the fights they have to endure away from the gridiron aren't often discussed. While the Jacksonville Jaguars were trying to win games late in the 2024 season, star pass rusher Josh Hines-Allen and his family had to fight a more important battle.
Just recently, Hines-Allen opened out about the fact that his son Wesley was diagnosed with leukemia as part of a campaign with the team to support pediatric cancer treatment. He recently posted a clip on social media in which he discusses the fight his family underwent.
The dreaded six-letter word that no parent ever wants to hear: Cancer.
— Joshua Hines-Allen (@JoshHinesAllen) July 25, 2025
Seven months ago, our world stopped when our son, Wesley, was diagnosed with leukemia.
As parents, we've held each other through tears we didn't know we had, watching our little boy fight the biggest battle… pic.twitter.com/KN33gTTaRT
Back in the season final, Josh Hines-Allen was listed as inactive because of personal reasons. At the time, nothing seemed out of place. After all, football players have to deal with things outside the field. It wasn't until now that the former Kentucky Wildcat talked about the subject that everyone found out. As a matter of fact, it's understandable that he didn't want to share the process with the public. Nevertheless, Kaytlin Allen has been grateful for all the support the family has gotten.
"We are very grateful and blessed to be in Jacksonville and to have received this unwavering support from the community," Allen said on the video.
The good news is that Wesley is doing better after undergoing treatment and is trending toward a full recovery. "Wesley is doing great. He's swimming every day. He's running around. He's playing sports," Allen said.
"He's got back to being the big brother, because he knows we have to go back to Nemours for an hour a day to go meet Dr Beth to make sure everything's okay. But we don't have to do treatment anymore," Hines-Allen said.
Related: Remembering the day the Jaguars ruined the day of Dan Marino's NFL career
Wesley and Josh Hines-Allen are showing rescelience throught the process
Again, NFL players get the spotlight because of their performance on the football field, and when they're going through a tough stretch, the public doesn't know what they're dealing with. In Josh Hines-Allen's case, nobody would have imagined that his family was facing a battle with cancer.
The fact that Hines-Allen and his family managed to get through deserves recognition. As he noted on the clip he shared, the last thing a parent wants to find out is that their kid has such a condition.
Now that he's taken care of it, Josh Hines-Allen can fully focus on being the game-wrecker he's been for the Jaguars throughout his career.