In what is believed to be the first public comments on Damar Hamlin by a Bills teammate, offensive tackle Dion Dawkins appeared on CNN and relived the horrifying moment the safety collapsed on the field in cardiac arrest during the first quarter of the team’s game against the Bengals on Monday night.
Speaking to Wolf Blitzer, Dawkins recalled the moment he knew something was wrong with Hamlin, who took a big hit while tackling Cincinnati receiver Tee Higgins, collapsed and had to have CPR performed on him for several minutes in a frightening scene that ended with the game being postponed.
“You look around and you see the medical staff doing their job, and you know when it’s something minor like somebody is down, but they’re sitting up, the guys are moving at a nice pace,” Dawkins told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Tuesday night.
Bills safety Damar Hamlin falls to the turf as Bills linebacker Tremaine Edmunds (49) helps him during the first half of a game against the Bengals.AP
Dion DawkinsGetty Images“But when things like this are going on, they’re waving really fast and calling guys on the field and calling for the elite medical staff – that’s when you really realize that something is really, really wrong.
“This was one of the first experiences for myself where something like this has happened in this type of way, where it silenced an entire stadium that was at an uproar half a play earlier.”
As of Wednesday morning, Hamlin remains in the hospital on a ventilator. Hamlin’s cousin, Dorrian Glenn, said the 24-year-old had to be resuscitated twice – first on the field, and then again in the hospital.
As the scene unfolded, many of his Bills teammates were seen distraught and even in tears. Dawkins told Blitzer he turned to the power of prayer in the scary moment.
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin makes the tackle on Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee HigginsUSA TODAY Sports“Whether you’re a believer or not, only a higher power can really take control of what is next,” he said. “Our people that helped also assisted that higher power. But in that moment you kind of just have to be vulnerable and let prayer go up and work its magic..
ESPN reported on the broadcast during the initial suspension of play the NFL wanted to resume play after a five-minute warmup period. The NFL has denied that to be the case.
“I’m truly blessed that we didn’t have to keep playing,” Dawkins said. “The fact that we did not have to go back out there on that field and play just shows that there is care, and that’s all we can ever ask for is that we get treated as people.
“Most people just treat us as athletes, as superstars, and some people like celebrities, but in that moment they [the NFL] treated us like people. And being treated as a person that is cared for, it’s a beautiful feeling.”
The league announced on Tuesday the game between two of the top teams in the NFL would not be made up this week.
