Colts safety Rodney Thomas honors longtime friend Damar Hamlin after interception
The Buffalo Bills have had quite an emotional week with the Damar Hamlin injury turning into a near-death experience. While it directly impacted the Bills, Hamlin also had a relationship with many all across the league, one of those was Indianapolis Colts safety Rodney Thomas II.
While not on the same team in the NFL, Hamlin and Thomas were on the same high school team at Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh. On Sunday while Hamlin recovered in the hospital, Thomas recorded an interception for the Colts, late in a close game. After the pick, Thomas honored his old teammate.
Thomas ran to the 30-yard line, where the Colts had the “3” painted red in Hamlin’s honor. Thomas put the ball on the ground and held up a heart for his teammate. You can see the video below.
More on Hamlin’s incident during Bills game
Hamlin collapsed early in the first quarter of Monday night’s matchup between the Bills and Cincinnati Bengals and was rushed to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. Hamlin has spent all week recovering, speaking with teammates Friday via FaceTime. As of Saturday morning, Hamlin was still listed in critical condition, the Bills said.
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Hamlin received a wealth of support from NFL fans and people around the country after the incident. A GoFundMe for his toy drive received millions of dollars in donations and the NFL is taking steps to honor him this week after the events of Monday night. He saw it all once he woke up.
Since coming to, Hamlin has released his a statement regarding the support he received, taking to Instagram to thank fans for their support.
“When you put real love out into the world it comes back to you 3x’s as much,” the Bills player wrote, along with three heart-hands emojis. “The Love has been overwhelming, but I’m thankful for every single person that prayed for me and reached out. We brung the world back together behind this. If you know me you know this only gone make me stronger. On a long road keep praying for me!”
Nick Schultz contributed to this report