Damar Hamlin enters the Buffalo Bills starting lineup with a second chance

ORCHARD PARK, NY — The images of that night in Cincinnati are seared into our minds. The world sat transfixed, glued to its televisions as the events unfolded, and continued to follow the news for days afterward.

To the rest of us, it seemed like an eternity ago. But to Damar Hamlin, it was his life. In some ways, it became a different life. He died on national television and was brought back.

“I think about it all the time,” Hamlin said. “As the world experienced it, it happened to me.”

Eventually, we moved on to other events, games, and storylines. Buffalo Bills fans could stop worrying about Hamlin's health and instead focus on the Miami Dolphins, hate the Kansas City Chiefs, argue online about whether Josh Allen deserves the MVP or is overrated, rave about Dalton Kincaid and Keon Coleman — lots of topics of the day.

Of course, we checked in with Hamlin to celebrate various milestones in his return from a freak cardiac arrest during a routine tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals on “Monday Night Football.” Returning to practice. Getting back in the pads. Taking the first hit. Playing a preseason game. Making the first live tackle. We looked at how Hamlin handled it and then moved on. He was fine.

Hamlin has since led a new life.

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

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

For the first time since that agonizing 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 in a moment of reflection Wednesday morning. “Just as great as his decision to return not only to football, but to full-contact football in the NFL. It's a physical game for anyone, especially for a young man who's been through what he's been through.”

“I can't even imagine, and I think many can't, what he went through to get to where he is now.”

What happened in Cincinnati was so shocking and disturbing that, while NFL officials and officials debated whether to go ahead with the anticipated matchup between the Bills and Bengals, McDermott had already decided he was no longer coaching. He would not return to the sidelines. He handed the job over to defensive coordinator and assistant head coach Leslie Frazier and informed Bengals coach Zac Taylor.

McDermott went to the hospital to be with Hamlin, whether there was a game or not.

“No real questions were asked,” McDermott said. “I repeated myself so Leslie and Zac knew that what they thought they heard was what I really said, because that's not normal.”

The Bills stood by Hamlin throughout his comeback. Most weeks he wasn't good enough to earn a uniform, but he remained on the 53-man roster.

On paper, he was a backup for 2023. He didn't play in all but five games. He didn't start in any. Hamlin played just 17 defensive snaps and made two tackles all season. Those are the stats of a player who is usually released once or twice or placed on the practice squad.

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 how strong Hamlin's example was, even when he was on the sidelines in civilian clothes on game days.

“When you say a star year, put two asterisks next to it, because where do you find that in the player's handbook, the head coach's handbook or the organization?” McDermott said.

“I completely understand the last-minute decisions when you're cutting back on the roster. Yes, it would have been unpopular (to fire Hamlin). But you always have to do what's in the best interest of the team. I can tell you, he earned it. Whether he was the first or the last in the boat really doesn't matter. When you watch his development from then 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, probably with some sort of lifetime ambassadorial role in the Bills' front office, but he remained patient while testing himself. The Bills gave him the space and time.

Long snapper Reid Ferguson watched Hamlin's development daily. They have dressing rooms next to each other and talk often.

“He was a bright spot in the room and always brought good energy,” said Ferguson, the Bills' longest-serving player. “That's exactly what we expected from him.”

“Maybe we saw Damar as Damar in the second half of last year – at least I did. He took those steps every day and became the guy before the Cincinnati game again. I don't think that night was what he wanted to be as his identity. He worked through it, the first practice with the protective gear, making the team, all those steps and hurdles that he had to overcome.”

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

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, brought in 15-year veteran Kareem Jackson in training camp and kept the door open for Hyde to return instead of retiring.

Edwards was battling a hamstring injury and Bishop injured his arm. Jackson, 36, didn't add much stability on the field but was named to the practice squad.

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

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

“It really made me allow myself freedom this season. Last season was mostly about healing and getting myself to do the hard stuff, throwing myself into things that were uncomfortable, that scared me or made me anxious. But last year I did the hard stuff to make it easier this year.”

Last year, when the rest of the world turned its back on Hamlin, aside from the occasional check-in, he focused on the day-to-day grind, the grind of the here and now. Hamlin couldn't forget the cardiac arrest and subsequent coma, and stormed back onto the field to assume the same professional stance he had during pregame warmups in Cincinnati.

Hamlin likes to put up sticky notes in his bathroom, motivational reminders of what's important, so he can jot down a thought or two as he starts his day. A favorite saying he mentioned in a conversation with reporters on Wednesday was, “Consistency is the true sign of greatness.”

“I think back to the whole process and not knowing if I would ever be able to play again and sitting in that uncertainty,” Hamlin said. “It really tormented me because football is truly my passion. It's what I've been obsessed with my whole life.

“It all comes down to the power of being process-oriented, taking things one day at a time, and accepting where you are at each step in the process. That's how you can truly conquer anything that comes your way.”

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

(Photo: Joe Sargent/Getty Images)