What Happened to NFL WR Xavier Restrepo’s Face?

In his fifth and final year at Miami (Florida) as a member of the Hurricanes football team, wideout Xavier Restrepo had a career season. He finished in the top 40 in the NCAA in receptions (69, t-38th), top 15 in receiving yards (an ACC-leading 1,127, t-13th overall), and top 10 in receiving TDs (ACC-leading 11, t-7th overall).

Despite those impressive numbers, Restrepo was not among the 257 players selected in the 2025 NFL Draft back in April. Nonetheless, he signed on as an undrafted free agent with the Tennessee Titans in May, reuniting with his college QB, Titans No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward.

And, once photos began circulating from rookie camp, minicamp, and training camp, NFL fans started asking questions about Restrepo. The wideout has noticeable swelling on the left side of his face, around his cheek and jaw. But why?

Turns out, Restrepo has a vascular malformation that causes his condition. In an interview with Footballville in 2022, his mother, Ashley Padgett, explained why it often flares up:

“Any time he gets exerted. Any time the blood flow is flowing and he’s working out and he’s exhausting himself, the blood flow, it makes the vascular veins… in his face swell up.”

According to Johns Hopkins, the standard when it comes to medicine in America, vascular malformation is a rare condition that causes blood vessels to “enlarge or form tangles, pockets, or shunting vessels that cause abnormal blood flow.” Some malformations can result in pain and/or bleeding. However, Restrepo’s has not caused him any ill effects apart from the cosmetic look of his face.

There is no clear cause of this condition, but genetics likely plays a role, according to leading medical professionals. Padgett, however, believes that the doctors who delivered her baby boy back in 2002 in Coconut Creek, Florida, may be at fault.

According to her, the doctors pinched a cluster of veins as well as his face as they attempted to use forceps to deliver Restrepo. It certainly sounds plausible, though she didn’t notice the malformation until Xavier was about three months old.

At the end of the day, the important part is that the malformation has not had any ill effects on Restrepo’s physical health. And it clearly hasn’t stopped him from chasing his football dream either. At 5’10” and 202 pounds with middling 4.7 speed, Restrepo was not given any physical gifts. And yet his hard work, awareness, hands, and footwork have allowed him to reach the cusp of the NFL.

Only two guys had more receiving yards than Restrepo over his last two years at the U. That dominance earned him Consensus All-American honors in 2024. Restrepo is clearly talented enough to play slot in the NFL. If no other team bites on the wideout while he’s on waivers, he’s a near-lock to return to the Titans as a practice squad player.

Apart from Calvin Ridley and Tyler Lockett, there is very limited quality in that Titans receiver room. We’re betting if he stays in Nashville, Xavier Restrepo sees the field at some point as a rookie.