Why'd Damar Hamlin Deny Bills Jersey Swap? For 'Mom'

Damar Hamlin denied a former Buffalo Bills teammate his Saturday jersey, but the story nonetheless holds a happy ending.

Buffalo Bills defender Damar Hamlin has been back on an NFL field for one game and already he's proving to be a shutdown defender. 

There are rarely any denials in the NFL's recently-minted tradition of swapping game jerseys when the battle is won. Hamlin's latest threads, even if they were worn in an otherwise meaningless preseason game, would hold some strong value: Saturday's exhibition with the Indianapolis Colts was his first contest since surviving his collapse from cardiac arrest during a January game in Cincinnati.

Saturday's game, a 23-19 Buffalo win, also afforded newly-minted Colt Isaiah McKenzie a chance to return to his NFL employers from the last five seasons. According to Bills team reporter Maddy Glab, McKenzie intended to swap jerseys with Hamlin ... but was peacefully denied by the defender for the most heartwarming of reasons.

Damar Hamlin says Isaiah McKenzie wanted to do a jersey swap after the game but that the first jersey had to go to his mom for everything she has done for him since January #Bills

— Maddy Glab (@MadGlab) August 12, 2023

"Hamlin says Isaiah McKenzie wanted to do a jersey swap after the game," Glab tweeted. "But ... the first jersey had to go to his mom for everything she has done for him since January."

Hamlin's mother Nina has often been cited as a major role in Hamlin's recovery and a primary reason why he was able to take the field on Saturday and beyond. Nina also gained significant attention when it was revealed that Tee Higgins, the Cincinnati Bengals receiver that Hamlin had tackled shortly before his scary on-field collapse, had reached out to her in the aftermath, a meeting that offered a peaceful resolution.

McKenzie returned Saturday's opening kickoff 22 yards while Hamlin had three tackles in the first half, including a vital no-gain stop on a one-yard fourth down. Though Hamlin denied his former teammate his jersey, the two did share an emotional reunion in the postgame aftermath, one captured by WHAM's Jenna Cottrell.

Damar Hamlin and Isaiah McKenzie 🫶🫶🫶#billsmafia pic.twitter.com/ZeW844PzGe

— Jenna Cottrell (@JennaCottrell) August 12, 2023

Hamlin and the Bills (1-0) return to preseason action on Saturday when they hit the road to battle the Pittsburgh Steelers (6:30 p.m. ET, WIVB). 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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