Damar Hamlin knows he treaded the fine line between life and death.
Hamlin, a safety on the Bills, went into cardiac arrest during the team’s Week 17 “Monday Night Football” game against the Bengals when he made a seemingly routine tackle on Tee Higgins. He collapsed on the field and was administered CPR.
Hamlin spoke to Michael Strahan on “Good Morning America” in his first interview since the harrowing incident, and credited Bills trainer Denny Kellington as the reason he is still here.
“I owe Denny my life, literally,” Hamlin said. “You know, he loves to say he was just doing his job, which is true, that night he was literally the savior of my life, administering CPR on me.”
Hamlin expressed gratitude for Kellington’s presence that day.
“He would say he was just doing his job, but if it wasn’t for someone showing up that day with a clear mind, and whatever’s going on in their personal life, to just put it aside and just be present in the moment to be able to actually do the job correctly, that’s something I’m truly thankful for and I don’t take for granted,” Hamlin said.
The full interview with Strahan will air Monday morning on “Good Morning America,” the day after Super Bowl 2023 between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs.
Hamlin has made the rounds during Super Bowl week in the Phoenix area. He also delivered an emotional tribute to the Bills medical staff that saved his life at the NFL Honors ceremony on Thursday night.
“Every day, I am amazed that my experiences could encourage so many others across the country, and even across the world,” Hamlin, 24, said in front of some of his NFL peers. “Encourage to pray, encourage to spread love, and encourage to keep fighting, no matter the circumstances. Sudden cardiac arrest was nothing that I would have ever chosen to be a part of my story.
“But that’s because sometimes, our own visions are too small, even when we think we are seeing the bigger picture. My vision was about playing in the NFL, and being the best player that I could be. But God’s plan, was to have a greater purpose than any game in this world.”
It continues what has been an amazing recovery for Hamlin, who fought for his life in intensive care for days as football fans around the country waited for a positive update. Hamlin was slowly taken off the ventilator and able to breathe on his own.
And it should put to rest once and for all the delusional conspiracy theory that Hamlin was using a body double during previous appearances.
Advertisement
Advertisement
That included Hamlin coming to the Bills’ AFC Divisional Round playoff loss against the Bengals, in which he visited his teammates in the locker room beforehand.
Source link
