Damar Hamlin Injury: Here are some of My Impressions for This

As I took off for Buffalo a week earlier to cover the tale of Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills defender who had a heart attack throughout a game Monday night, floods of memories came racing back.

Here are my impressions of covering Damar Hamlin’s injury as a previous Buffalo Bills player.

Buffalo reminds one of home.

Before I ran through tunnel to participate in my initial NFL game in 2002, I had never attended a game in person. This city, Buffalo, has fulfilled a boyhood ambition of mine. Next to the biggest crowds, I would eventually play here for 6 of my 9 NFL seasons. One of my biggest privileges in life is playing for the Buffalo Bills.

But it was a difficult week. I played safety, the same area as Hamlin, so I am aware of the struggles that the Bills players have been facing lately. But it was a difficult week. I played safety, the same area as Hamlin, so I am aware of the struggles that the Bills players have been facing lately.

When one of my Bills colleagues, Kevin Everett, suffered a paralyzing hit during a game around 2007, I was on the ground to see it happen. On the field, his body was shaking as we watched. The ambulance arrived, and with it the sobs and worries. We gathered close to him and knelt in prayer. Therefore, it was challenging to imagine what this current squad and this city were going through at this moment while reliving all of that.

Buffalo has recently experienced tragedy after tragedy; a fatal mass shooting occurred seven months ago, and a snowstorm around two weeks ago claimed the lives of hundreds of people. The present? A devastating blow to the soul was dealt to Buffalo as they witnessed one of their cherished Bills, who they turn to for support through trying times, go to the ground in that manner.

But Buffalo was the kind of city that, in the face of such tragedy, would emerge stronger.

Hamlin continued to improve during the week. He started using video calls to communicate with the group, thanking everyone for their support. His GoFundMe campaign to gather money for children’s toys, which had a $2500 initial goal, quickly surpassed $9 million.

The narrative shifted from being about Hamlin to being about humanity. Buffalo helped us to be our best selves.

Then a miraculous event took place. The first play of Buffalo’s first game following the on-field cardiac arrest of player #3… NyHeim Hines of Buffalo returned the opening kickoff 96 yards for a score. The last time the Bills received a kicking for a touchdown was three years and three months prior. It was spiritual, according to Josh Allen, the standout quarterback for the Bills. Chill to the bone. From a hospital, Hamlin wrote, “God behind All Everything, no coincidence.”

Perhaps it is a coincidence that God’s number is three. Sacred Trinity. But most likely not.

The final score was 35–23 in favor of the Bills. Yet this was much more significant than a game. Through this tragedy, people all over the world united to support Damar Hamlin. The manifestations of humanity, such as grace, empathy, empathy, and love, have been genuinely exceptional. Nothing in the world unites individuals from different racial, geographic, age, socioeconomic, and religious origins like sports do.

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