The NFL moved forward with a difficult balancing act on Tuesday, navigating player emotions after Buffalo safety dummer Hamlin’s shock cardiac arrest, highlighting Hamlin’s health was the main focus .
The league has notified the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals that games suspended Monday night will not resume this week and that the Week 18 schedule remains unchanged for now.
No decision has been made regarding the potential restart of the all-important Bills-Bengals game. The game was suspended in the first quarter when Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle.
Hamlin, 24, remained critically ill a day after the Bills said his heart had stopped after a seemingly routine play. I got up a little earlier.
Medical staff restored his heartbeat during a desperate moment on the field before being loaded into an ambulance. Players from both teams cried and prayed in a moving scene in front of a nationally televised audience.
In a letter sent to all teams, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “Dummer experienced cardiac arrest and was quickly resuscitated by club doctors on site and independent medical personnel. They all We are highly trained to carry out medical emergency plans,” he said, according to the Associated Press. “Damar has been stabilized and transferred to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, a Level 1 trauma center, where he remains in the ICU.”
Hamlin’s uncle, Dorian Glenn, told CNN and other media outlets that Hamlin had to restart his heart twice. He said there were some encouraging signs for his nephew on Tuesday, including doctors lowering Hamlin’s need for oxygen levels from 100% to 50% for him.
Goodell informed the club that Dr. Nyaka NiiLampti, the clinician and head of player engagement for each team, has sent information on mental health and support resources available to players and staff.
“Additional resources, including on-site services, are available for clubs that want this assistance,” said Goodell.
Goodell told the team that he would be notified promptly of any changes to this weekend’s schedule.
Several teams, including the New England Patriots, have canceled media access. They plan to face the bill on Sunday.
The Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars practiced before the game to determine the AFC South champions on Saturday night.
“I have no hesitation about playing,” said defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons, a two-time Pro Bowler with the Titans.
Simmons said his 15-year-old cousin, Jason “JJ” Hatcher, died of heart problems during soccer practice on December 18. The teen, who was a sophomore at Hebron High School in Carrollton, Texas, was , son of former 10-year NFL veteran defensive end Jason Hatcher, who spent the last eight seasons of his career with the Dallas Cowboys.
Simmons received a call announcing his cousin’s death before the Titans played a late afternoon game in Los Angeles in a 17-14 loss to the Chargers.
“We can’t take this game for granted because you never know,” Simmons said. The real reason we play games, sometimes we forget…we play for each other, we play for our families, and most of all… , just play for ourselves, because that’s all we’ve ever known in our lives.”
Simmons said of Hamlin: “You never know when your last night will be. So there’s just one thing that doesn’t take for granted. And I’m praying for him and his family.”
Titans manager Mike Vrabel and Pittsburgh Steelers manager Mike Tomlin said they have not had any discussions with the league about postponing games this week.
Two-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers said he was “upset.”
The Green Bay Packers quarterback makes a weekly appearance on YouTube and SiriusXM’s ‘The Pat McAfee Show,’ where you’ll meet your NFL fraternity. One of my brothers is now fighting for his life.
“I’ve been in a few games where they’ve taken players off the karts and some of them had neck injuries. and many of them give up thumbs up or not and still make you shiver. It’s a thing. It feels weird. ”
“In this situation, this is unprecedented. Definitely not in my time….I’ve never seen a player on the field who had to be resuscitated and probably had no pulse.” said Rogers. “I thought, ‘No way. They’re going to go back to the locker room and come out and play. What? That can’t happen.'”
The NFL has disputed television reports that both teams were told to resume play after a five-minute warm-up. It never crossed my mind.
The Kansas City Chiefs practiced Tuesday ahead of Saturday afternoon’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Chiefs (13-3) are competing with the Bills (12-3) and Bengals (11-4) for his AFC’s No. 1 seed.
In this way, the result of the Bills vs. Bengals game will greatly affect the playoffs. The Bills entered the game in first place, and the Bengals’ victory gave him a chance to clinch the AFC North, also in the No. 1-seeded mix alongside Kansas City.
The Bengals were leading 7-3 in the first quarter when the game was suspended. The NFL plans to start the playoffs on January 14th. The #1 seed in each conference earns first round bye and home field advantage through the playoffs.
It’s unclear how the league will handle seeding if the Bills-Bengals game isn’t over. The NFL could delay the start of the playoffs for him by a week, eliminating his extra week between the conference championship game and the Super Bowl. The Pro Bowl game he has scheduled for February 5th.
The NFL team changed its Twitter avatar to a blue Bills background with Hamlin’s No. 3 and the words “Pray for Damar.”
