A Monumental Outcry of Support for Damar Hamlin

Damar Hamlin, a safety for the Buffalo Bills football team, suffered cardiac arrest on the field during Monday Night Football on January 2, 2023. He received CPR on the field for nine minutes and was ultimately resurrected before being taken to a local hospital. Hamlin woke up in the hospital three days after the incident, still on a ventilator. The monumental outcry of support from both the public and all the NFL teams is something that has never been seen in the sports world before.

Immediately after the incident while the Monday Night Football broadcast was still airing, multiple prominent football stars started tweeting out and asked for prayers for Hamlin. This included JJ Watt, Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins, Myles Garret, Tim Tebow, Justin Fields, Odell Beckham Jr., AJ Brown, Russel Wilson, Lamar Jackson, and so many more. There were also several NFL teams who tweeted during the broadcast.

The day after the game, all 32 NFL teams changed their profile picture on Twitter and Instagram to a graphic that read, “Pray for Damar” with his jersey number, 3, on it. The unity of the NFL shown in this moment was heartwarming to so many.

The graphic that all 32 teams used for their profile picture following the injury of Damar Hamlin.

As Hamlin was receiving CPR on the field, his fundraiser for a Community Toy Drive—run through his non-profit organization, Chasing M’s—was found and shared on the internet by many. The fundraiser’s original goal was $2,500, which took him two years to raise; however, after the discovery by the internet, the fundraiser exploded.

The fundraiser raised about $5.5 million in the first 24 hours after his injury. As of January 15, the fundraiser has raised about $8.91 million dollars. The foundation hopes to continue to bring a larger, lasting impact to Hamlin’s community through toy drives, back-to-school drives, kids camps, and more.

The day after the incident on an episode of ESPN’s NFL Live, a formal NFL quarterback and commentator, Dan Orlovsky, took a moment to pray when talking about Damar Hamlin’s situation.

He led a group prayer after stating, “I heard the Buffalo Bills organization say that we believe in prayer, and maybe this is not the right thing to do, but it’s on my heart and I want to pray for Damar Hamlin right now. I’m going to do it out loud, I’m going to close my eyes and bow my head, and I’m going to pray for him.”

Multiple broadcasters and sports analysts told their audiences to pray for Damar Hamlin, his family, his friends, and his teammates. However, Orlovsky was the first broadcaster to pray on national television for the situation.

The night after the injury, about a third of the NFL teams showed their support for Damar Hamlin and the Buffalo Bill’s by lighting their stadiums blue, or red and blue. Some of the stadiums that were lit up were the Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati—where the injury happened—Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, Hard Rock stadium in Miami, Empower Field in Denver, Lumen Field in Seattle, and many more.

A small collage of the different NFL players who wore “Love for Damar” shirts during pregame warm up, following his injury, tweeted by the Buffalo Bills.

The following weekend of football—starting on January 7—there was a large amount of support for Hamlin shown in a multitude of ways. Almost every player apart of the NFL wore a shirt that read “Love for Damar” with his jersey number, 3, on it during pregame warmup. Every stadium that was played at on that weekend outlined their three on both 30-yard lines with either blue or red.

Every stadium also held a moment of silence for Hamlin before the games started, so that people could pray for this continued healing and recovery. The Buffalo Bills also took a moment to recognize their medical and athletic training staff whose quick work resulted in the saving of Hamlin’s life.

The Buffalo Bills also paid extra tribute to Hamlin by wearing patches on their jerseys with the number 3 on them. They also ran out of the tunnel at the beginning of the game with flags that read “Pray for Damar” with his jersey number. John Brown, a receiver for the Bills, also gave his touchdown ball to the assistant athletic trainer who administered CPR to Hamlin, Denny Kellington.

There have been many different avenues that broadcasters, analysts, sports stars, NFL players, NFL teams, and the public has shown their support and love for Damar Hamlin, all of which have helped his friends, teammates, and family remain hopeful in a time of despair. Hamlin is now out of the hospital and back in Buffalo, focused on recovery.