Damar Hamlin set to make first NFL start since on-field medical emergency in 2023

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is about to start a new chapter in his NFL career. The team announced on Wednesday that Hamlin will start in the season opener against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. This will be the Pittsburgh Panthers alum’s first start since suffering cardiac arrest during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals in January 2023.

“What else can’t this young man do? He basically went through what he went through on the field, you guys have written about that over and over, and to come back from that,” Bills head coach Sean McDermott said on Wednesday, per NFL.com. “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, right? Let alone just to decide to play football and contact football in full pads at the NFL level.

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“I don’t think I need to say anything more. It’s incredible. I think God’s hands have been on Damar and his family and will continue to be. We’re just extremely proud and full of gratitude to watch him go through what he went through and where he is now.”

During the 2022 season, Hamlin started 13 of 15 games. That was the same season in which Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest in Week 17. First responders quickly attended to Hamlin to save his life. He returned to football last fall and played in five games. For the 2024 season, Hamlin will start alongside teammate Taylor Rapp at safety.

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Damar Hamlin played in his first game since the medical emergency in August 2023. It was a preseason contest, and Hamlin decided to return. “I made the choice that I wanted to play, it wasn’t nobody else’s choice but mine,” he said, per the Bills’ official website. “So making that choice, I know what comes with it. So, you see my cleats laced up and my helmet and shoulder pads on, there ain’t gonna be no hesitation because you can’t play this game like that. You’ll put yourself at more risk by hesitating. I’m out there and I’m just not thinking twice, I’m just playing my game.”

The Bills selected Hamlin in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. During his time at Pittsburgh, Hamlin was named to the All-ACC Second Team after recording 66 tackles, two interceptions and seven passes defended.