Partway through the 1st quarter of tonight’s NFL Monday Night Football game, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field, unresponsive. This is a developing story that we’ll continue to update on as it progresses. Here are the details we have so far. Please note videos of the incident may be distressing to watch. It is not outwardly gory or explicit, but given we do not know the medical status of Damar Hamlin, that in itself makes it unsettling.
We will not be linking to the video.
Hamlin makes the stop on Bengals wide-receiver Tee Higgins. Though a hard hit, it doesn’t appear much harder than what you’d expect from normal play. Hamlin appears to stand up fine but in seconds, drops down unresponsive. Medical crews immediately rushed to Hamlin to begin checking on him. CPR was performed on him until an ambulance was able to arrive on field and transport Hamlin to a local hospital.
Many of the players engaged in group prayer for Hamlin, not knowing what the condition of their fellow player was.
For some time, the NFL refused to call the game, and only temporarily suspended play. Ultimately, around 10:00 PM EST, the league made the decision to completely call off the game. Given how long it took them (over an hour), there has understandably been some heavy online criticism of the league.
As for Damar Hamlin himself, we await further update on his condition and will report as soon as we find out any more information. In the meantime our thoughts and hope are with him, his teammates, and his loved ones.
Hamiln’s GoFundMe toy drive and back to school fund has raised an astounding $3.5 million since the incident occurred. It continues to climb.
Update: 1.2.2023, 10:45pm (EST)
Hamlin’s vitals are normal and he is currently having a breathing tube inserted down his throat while tests are being run.
