The Monday Night Football game between the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals was suspended in the first quarter after Bills DB Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
With the Bengals leading 7-3, Buffalo’s Hamlin, a second-year safety, made a tackle of Bengals WR Tee Higgins around 8:55 p.m. ET, got to his feet, staggered and then collapsed onto his back. Medical personnel rushed on the field while the players from both teams gathered in prayer. Around half an hour later (9:25 p.m. ET), Hamlin was taken to the hospital with family members by his side.
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The Bills updated Hamlin’s condition at 2 a.m. ET:
Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest following a hit in our game versus the Bengals. His heartbeat was restored on the field and he was transferred to the UC Medical Center for further testing and treatment. He is currently sedated and listed in critical condition.
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) January 3, 2023
On Monday night, the NFL released a statement:
“Tonight’s Buffalo Bills-Cincinnati Bengals game has been postponed after Buffalo Bills’ Damar Hamlin collapsed, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced. Hamlin received immediate medical attention on the field by team and independent medical staff and local paramedics. He was then transported to a local hospital where he is in critical condition.
“Our thoughts are with Damar and the Buffalo Bills. We will provide more information as it becomes available.
“The NFL has been in constant communication with the NFL Players Association which is in agreement with postponing the game.”
It was originally announced that there would be a short delay and the game was temporarily suspended, but as the gravity of the situation sunk in it and it became clear that this wasn’t a typical injury that we see cause pauses in games all the time, the universal opinion on the ESPN broadcast and across social media was that the game shouldn’t resume on Monday evening.
Our VSiN colleague Michael Lombardi, a longtime NFL executive, posted a series of Tweets @MLombardiNFL:
“Everyone wants to go to the hospital not back on the field.”
“If I’m Sean McDermott I’m taking the team to the hospital. The NFL can do whatever they want.”
On Tuesday morning, a statement was released from Hamlin’s family, thanking the public for their generosity in donating millions to Hamlin’s toy drive and asking for prayers. No update on his health was provided:
Announcement directly from Damar’s family: pic.twitter.com/MdzgxUmVfg
— Jordon Rooney (@jordonr) January 3, 2023
On Tuesday afternoon, the NFL sent out a release stating that the Bills-Bengals game would not be resumed this week and that there were no other changes to Week 18 games upcoming this weekend:
Week 18 remains on as scheduled. Full statement: pic.twitter.com/bYs45J3uCq
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 3, 2023
