Damar Hamlin steps into Buffalo Bills starting role with second chance at life

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The images of that night in Cincinnati are seared into our consciousness. The world sat and stared at their televisions, transfixed, as it happened, and absorbed in the coverage for days afterward.

To the rest of us, that seemed like an eternity ago. But for Damar Hamlin, it was his life. In a very literal way, it was another life. He died on national television and was brought back.

“I think about it all the time,” Hamlin said. “Even though the world has gone through it, it happened to me.”

At some point, we moved on to other events, games, and storylines. Buffalo Bills fans could stop worrying about Hamlin’s health and focus on owning the Miami Dolphins, hating the Kansas City Chiefs, fighting online about whether Josh Allen deserved the MVP or was overrated, waxing lyrical about Dalton Kincaid and Keon Coleman — all sorts of topics of the day.

Of course, we’d check in with Hamlin to celebrate various markers upon his return from a freak cardiac arrest while making a routine tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals on “Monday Night Football.” Return to practice. Put the pads back on. Take that first hit. Play a preseason game. Make his first live-action tackle. We’d note how Hamlin handled it and move on. He was OK.

Hamlin has since lived a new life.

“I’m blessed for many reasons,” he said, “and I have a second chance to do things the right way in all areas of my life.”

But a big part of Hamlin’s journey has been getting back to the man and football player he once was.

For the first time since that grueling night 20 months ago, Hamlin will be a starting safety on Sunday when the Bills open their season against the Arizona Cardinals at Highmark Stadium.

“What an accomplishment,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said Wednesday morning during a moment of reflection. “As big as his decision to not only go back to football, but full-contact, NFL football. It’s a physical game for anyone, let alone a young man who’s been through what he’s been through.

“I can’t even imagine, and I think a lot of people can’t, what he’s had to go through to get to where he is today.”

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What happened in Cincinnati was so shocking and disturbing that, as NFL executives and officials debated whether to resume the anticipated matchup between the Bills and Bengals, McDermott had already decided not to coach. He did not return to the sidelines. He gave the job to defensive coordinator and assistant head coach Leslie Frazier and informed Bengals coach Zac Taylor.

McDermott was going to the hospital to be with Hamlin, race or not.

“There were no real questions asked,” McDermott said. “I repeated myself so that Leslie and Zac knew that what they thought they heard was what I actually said, because it’s not normal.”

The Bills continued to support Hamlin during his comeback. He wasn’t good enough to get a uniform most weeks, but he remained on the 53-man roster.

On paper alone, he was a 2023 fringe player. He was a healthy scratch for all but five games. He started none. Hamlin played just 17 defensive snaps and made two tackles all season. Those are the stats of a player who usually gets ejected or relegated to the practice squad once or twice.

Damar Hamlin remained a positive presence in the locker room even when he wasn’t playing. (Shawn Dowd/USA Today)

McDermott became emotional when asked about the power of Hamlin’s example, even in street clothes on the sidelines.

“When you talk about an asterisk year, put two asterisks by this year, because where do you find that in the player’s handbook, the head coach’s handbook or the organization’s handbook?” McDermott said.

“I totally understand the decisions that were made in the last hour, when you cut the roster, yeah, it wouldn’t have been popular (to fire Hamlin). That said, you always have to do what’s in the best interest of the team. I can tell you, he earned it. Whether he was first in the boat or last in the boat, it doesn’t really matter. If you look at his trajectory from that point to now, it’s very impressive.”

So 2023 was essentially an investment in Hamlin and the organization, a development year for what we see today. Hamlin could have retired from football, likely with some sort of lifelong ambassadorial role within the Bills’ front office, but he remained patient as he tested himself. The Bills gave him space and time.

Long snapper Reid Ferguson watched Hamlin’s progress daily. They have adjacent locker rooms and talk often.

“He was a light in the room, always brought good energy,” said Ferguson, the longest-tenured Bills player. “That’s what we expected from him.

“Maybe in the second half of last year we saw Damar as Damar — I certainly did. It was taking those steps every day, getting back to the man for the game in Cincinnati. I don’t think that night was what he wanted as his identity. He worked through it, the first pad workout, making the team, all those steps and hurdles that he had to jump through.”

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The Bills were, rightfully, unsure whether Hamlin would fill the void left by the departures of longtime safety Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde. Even with the developmental year, Hamlin was like an early astronaut. Who knows what will happen to him or what his body and mind can handle?

They signed free agent Mike Edwards, who won Super Bowls with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chiefs, drafted Utah safety Cole Bishop in the second round, added 15-year veteran Kareem Jackson in training camp and left the door open for Hyde to return instead of retiring.

Edwards was nursing a hamstring injury and Bishop injured his arm. Jackson, 36, did not provide significant stability on the field but was signed to the practice squad.

Hamlin looked more like the player you would have expected last year had he not suffered a cardiac arrest and turned his world upside down this summer. He played like a young defenseman, building on a competent 13-start season. That’s the work he’s done in 2022.

“I want to thank everyone in this entire building, from top to bottom, for their support and the space they’ve given me to heal and have my process happen exactly the way I needed it to,” Hamlin said.

“It really pushed me to let myself be free this season. Last season was all about healing and making myself do the hard things, forcing myself to do things that were uncomfortable, that scared me or gave me anxiety. But I did the hard things last year to make it easier this year.”

Last year, when the rest of the world was leaving Hamlin, save for the occasional check-in, he kept his mind on the daily process, the here-and-now grind. Hamlin couldn’t just forget about the cardiac arrest and subsequent coma and rush back onto the field to take the same professional spot he had during the pre-race warm-up in Cincinnati.

Hamlin likes to put Post-its in his bathroom, motivational reminders of what’s important, so he can process a thought or two at the start of the day. A favorite quote he mentioned during a call with reporters on Wednesday was: “Consistency is the true mark of greatness.”

“I think back to the whole process and I didn’t even know if I was ever going to be able to play again, just sitting there in the uncertainty,” Hamlin said. “It really ate at me because football is my passion. It’s something I’ve been obsessed with my whole life.

“It’s all about the power of being process-oriented and taking things one day at a time and accepting where you are at each step of the way. It really allows you to overcome anything that comes your way.”

On the chest of his black hoodie were two more words: “Don’t Quit.”

(Photo: Joe Sargent/Getty Images)