Damar Hamlin may return to football
Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills safety whose heart stopped during a prime time game in January, has been cleared to return to football activities, Bills General Manager Brandon Beane announced Tuesday.
Beane said that on Friday three specialists unanimously gave Hamlin permission to resume practice and that he was at the team’s facility this week for the start of the Bills’ offseason training program.
“My heart is still in the game,” Hamlin said at a press conference on Tuesday. “I like the game. It’s something I want to prove to myself – not someone else.
Hamlin, 25, received lifesaving care after suffering an on-field cardiac arrest in the first quarter of the Bills game against the Bengals in Cincinnati on Jan. 2. He collapsed after a routine tackle on receiver Tee Higgins, which put his head in Hamlin’s chest. After the tackle, Hamlin stood up and took two steps before falling to the floor.
Medical professionals administered CPR and tended to Hamlin for 10 minutes as players on both teams became visibly upset, some crying on the sidelines and others circling together and kneeling in prayer. Hamlin was revived on the field and then rushed to a hospital in Cincinnati, where he spent nearly a week in an intensive care unit. He was later transported to a hospital in Buffalo to continue his recovery.
In the days following the collapse, Hamlin received an outpouring of support, with more than 200,000 people donating more than $9 million to a toy campaign Hamlin had previously set up on a GoFundMe page. A representative for Hamlin has said the money will go to Hamlin’s charitable foundation.
Hamlin’s agent, Ira Turner, said in a brief interview Tuesday that Hamlin was not required to sign a special release or complete additional contractual steps to return to play. The Bills placed Hamlin on the injured reserve list while he rehabbed. Turner said Hamlin has continued to train and is in “great” shape.
“He’s ready, he’s excited,” Turner said. “I’m sure there are nerves like with anything, but he’s ready to go.”
Since being released from hospital in January, Hamlin has made a number of high-profile public appearances. He helped honor Bill’s training and medical staff, as well as the hospital workers who treated him at a Super Bowl pregame ceremony in February. Days before the championship game, Hamlin gave an emotional speech after accepting the Community Award at the NFL Honors ceremony.
“I have a long road ahead of me, a journey full of unknowns and a journey full of milestones, but it’s a lot easier to face your fears when you know your goal,” he said.
In March, Hamlin met with President Biden in the Oval Office and spoke before Congress in support of a bill that, if passed, would fund access to automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, in schools.