Former Pitt S Damar Hamlin Taken to Hospital After Scary Injury

Medical staff administered CPR to former Pitt Panthers safety Damar Hamlin on the field. The game has since been suspended.

PITTSBURGH -- Not even all the way through the first quarter of the final Monday Night Football game of the season, former Pitt Panther and current Buffalo Bill Damar Hamlin suffered a scary injury on the field. He went to make a tackle and stood up for a beat before collapsing on the ground. 

With both the Bills and Bengals' full teams surrounding him at midfield, medical staff attended to Hamlin for about 15 minutes on the field, administering CPR before taking him off on a backboard and in an ambulance.

They are giving Damar Hamlin CPR on the field.

— Jay Skurski (@JaySkurski) January 3, 2023

The game was temporarily suspended and both teams went back to their own locker rooms to regroup. 

Hamlin was a four-year standout at Pitt, recording nearly 300 career tackles and 19 passes defended before leaving school in 2021 and getting drafted in the sixth round by Buffalo. He had earned a starting job with the Super Bowl contender Bills after taking advantage of an opportunity opened up by some injuries on the back end. 

Reports from Cincinnatti claim Hamlin did have a pulse and has been transported to a local hospital with a police escort. The ambulance waited for his mother to come down from the stands before leaving Paycor Stadium. 

I’m told Damar Hamlin has a pulse, but is not breathing on his own. He is being transported to UC.

Needed AED and CPR on the field.

— Joe Danneman (@FOX19Joe) January 3, 2023

Staff from the Bills and Bengals began loading the equipment from the sidelines onto carts about a half an hour after Hamlin had arrived at the hospital. 

Bills and Bengals are packing up and some out of uniform. Game apparently will not resume tonight.

— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) January 3, 2023

The NFL released a statement at 10:06 PM EST confirming that the game had been postponed - after the teams had already begun to take their pads off and clean up equipment - and that Hamlin was in critical condition. 

NFL statement on tonight’s Bills-Bengals game: pic.twitter.com/odLrDlpQGU

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 3, 2023

Hamlin's marketing rep, Jordan Rooney, provided an update, saying his vitals were normal and that doctors had put him to sleep before running more tests. 

Update on Damar:

His vitals are back to normal and they have put him to sleep to put a breathing tube down his throat. They are currently running tests.

We will provide updates as we have them.

— Jordon Rooney (@jordonr) January 3, 2023

This story will be updated as new details are made available. 

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