“I’m not out there playing,” Bills WR Stefon Diggs reveals his emotions on seeing his teammate and friend Damar Hamlin collapse on the ground due to a cardiac arrest
Stefon Diggs talks about the impact Damar Hamlin's injury had on the Bills players.
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Damar Hamlin and Stefon Diggs (Image via WSIU and Wall Street Journal)
At the start of this year, the entire sports world faced one of the darkest days in the history of any sport. Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest in the middle of the Bills-Bengals Week 17 game. The Bills safety was tackling Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins before he fell down on the ground unconscious and had to be given immediate CPR on the ground to keep him alive.
Hamlin was shifted to the UC Medical Center, and the game was not continued further. Everyone in the league let go of their generation-old team rivalries and came together as one to pray for the young player who was battling for his life on death’s doorstep. Thankfully, Damar Hamlin was fully conscious and tweeting and face-timing his teammates within a week of his injury.
Every stadium in the league was lit with Hamlin’s jersey number to show their support for Hamlin. Fans and players both started donating huge amounts of money to Damar’s charity and the funds were raised in the range of $8 million. It was beautiful to see how everyone came together as one to pray for one person without seeing his race, religion, or sex.
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Stefon Diggs was contemplating resuming the game after Damar Hamlin’s injury
Bills star wide receiver Stefon Diggs was probably one of the most affected people when Damar Hamlin fell to the ground. He is one of the closest friends of the safety and recently shared his emotions during the testing times for both him and Hamlin. Appearing on the latest episode of Uninterrupted’s “The Shop,” Diggs was asked if he wanted to continue playing the game or not.
“Of course, they ultimately ended the game … which was probably in the best interest. But, in that moment, if we had to go back out there, I know Damar would’ve wanted us to play … because when he came to finally, his first words were, ‘Did we win?,’” Diggs said.
“I was a little iffy. I was like ‘Damn, am I messed up for wanting to get guys to play?’ Obviously, some guys couldn’t. But then when he woke up and said ‘Did we win,’ it was reassuring that I know he has a winning spirit. I knew my little bro would’ve wanted me to go bump with them, not go and leave.” Talking about putting things in perspective for fans, Stefon Diggs added, “Our Damar Hamlin situation, when we kind of damn near lost somebody on the field. That’s how physical it is. That’s how serious it is. So, when people refer to it as a game, I like to say, ‘I’m not out there playing.'”
Damar Hamlin‘s injury has really introduced people to the dark sides of playing any sport and not just football. There will definitely be progress made regarding injuries suffered by players during games and steps will be taken to make sure that nothing as drastic as a cardiac arrest ever happens in the NFL. Hamlin was seen at the Highmark Stadium cheering on his team in the divisional playoffs. He also addressed the public for the first time in the last week of January and thanked everyone involved in saving his life and donating to his charity.
NFLPA medical director Dr. Thom Mayer said last month that Damar Hamlin will play football again. Let’s hope everyone gets to see him play in the upcoming season!
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