Buffalo Bills name Damar Hamlin starting safety in feel-good story

It was back in January of 2023 that Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin nearly lost his life. The former Pittsburgh Panther star laid motionless on the field in Cincinnati during a game against the Bengals.

Hamlin had initially gotten up after a hit on Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins before collapsing on to the field.

By now, pretty much everyone knows what transpired. Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest . The sixth-round pick had to be revived more than once on the field and nearly died that night.

Since then, he’s made an absolutely amazing recovery. It’s now led to the Bills naming Hamlin one of their starting safeties ahead of Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals this coming Sunday.

“I think it’s consistency and opportunity,” Bills head coach Sean McDermott said of Damar Hamlin, via the team’s official website . “The opportunity that was there, he took advantage of it and was consistent. (He) built a certain level of rapport with (Taylor) Rapp, and that’s important as well at the safety position.”

Buffalo moved on from safeties Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde this past offseason. The team will now have two new starters in Hamlin and Rapp.

“What else can’t this young man do,” McDermott continued.

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Damar Hamlin, from near-death experience to starting for the Buffalo Bills

Sunday’s outing will represent Hamlin’s first start since the 2022 season. The 26-year-old started 13 games during that 2022 season before going down in the aforementioned outing against Cincinnati.

This past season saw Hamlin stuck behind others on Buffalo’s depth chart. He played only 17 snaps on defense and found himself on the roster bubble. That’s obviously not the case heading into Week 1.

“It’s one thing to come back off of an ACL or a broken bone. It’s another thing to come back off of what he came back off of,” McDermott told reporters. “Let alone just to decide to play football, contact football in full pads at the NFL level. I don’t think I need to say anything more. It’s incredible.”

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