“You won the game of life,” says his doctor
Footballer Damar Hamlin is making progress after suffering cardiac arrest in an NFL game. The Buffalo Bills linebacker has now woken up from his coma. His first thought is for the game and his teammates.
Damar hamlin had just woken up from his dramatic cardiac arrest on the field when he thought about football again. The first thing the 24-year-old professional footballer wanted to know after he regained consciousness in the hospital after collapsing in the game on Monday was whether his team Buffalo Bills had won the game against the Cincinnati Bengals. “Damar, you’ve won the game of life,” his doctor, Timothy Pritts, replied.
Hamlin had yet to submit his most pressing questions in writing. According to the Buffalo Bills, he has not yet been able to speak again because an oxygen supply tube is still in his mouth. The NFL professional conveyed the most important message without words. “It’s typical Damar. That he thinks of his teammates first and doesn’t feel sorry for himself. As a teammate, you can’t help but love that answer,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said of his teammate’s first question.
Since collapsing last Monday when Hamlin went into cardiac arrest and required CPR, the 24-year-old has shown “remarkable improvements,” the Bills said. “Even though he’s still in critical condition, he’s neurologically fine,” his team said. Hamlin can once again grasp other people’s hands and communicate in writing.
The Bills want to focus on sports again
“It seems like all the cylinders in his brain are working, which is gratifying for all of us. While he still has significant progress to make, this marks a good turning point in his ongoing treatment,” said Pritts.
US President Joe Biden wrote on Twitter of “great news. Damar, as I told your mom and dad, Jill and I — along with all of America — are praying for you and your family.” Biden had previously spoken to Hamlin’s parents at length on the phone.
Damar Hamlin is on the mend after the dramatic accident
Those: AP/Greg M. Cooper
Meanwhile, the Buffalo Bills also spoke to Hamlin’s father, and Bills head coach Sean McDermott was encouraged to focus on the sport again: “His message was: The team should focus on the goals that it has set for itself has. Damar would have wanted it that way. And we owe it to Damar, too,” McDermott said. So the Bills changed their current motto slightly from “Pray for 3” to “Play for 3”. The three is Hamlin’s jersey number.
Pray and play for the number 3
What: AP/Jeffrey T. Barnes
“We want to go out on the field and play for the number three. And he’s going to be a driving force for us,” Allen said. Because for the Bills there is still a lot at stake. The team still has a shot at the best record in the AFC after the main round and a bye in the first round of the playoffs.
Abandoned game will not be resumed or replayed
On the last day of the main round on Sunday, the Bills host the New England Patriots. The game against the Bengals will not be continued or repeated, the NFL announced on . Since the Bills and the Bengals will end the main round with 16 instead of 17 games, the league has developed various scenarios to avoid injustices in the table. The owners of the teams will vote on this.
The Buffalo Bills players and coaches pray for Damar Hamlin on the field
Which: AP/Joshua A. Bickel
However, returning to the football field without Hamlin on Sunday will not be easy for the team. “I would be lying if I said some people weren’t changed forever after this incident,” Allen said. “But the helmet [im Training] Getting back on track has been a really good thing for us as a team.”
