Russell Wilson offers perspective on Damar Hamlin scare, life and football
Jan 4, 2023, 3:48 PM
The NFL world continues to think about the health and future of Bills safety Damar Hamlin.
Hamlin collapsed in the first quarter of a Monday Night Football game against the Bengals after he made a tackle. Hamlin’s heart stopped as he went into a cardiac arrest. He was revived on the field, put into an ambulance and remains at the UC Medical Center for further treatment. On Wednesday, a friend and the Bills said Hamlin is improving, so that’s obviously great news.
The scary situation remains on the minds of everyone around the league, including the Denver Broncos. QB Russell Wilson met the media on Wednesday afternoon, and nearly his entire session was questions about what happened with Hamlin. Wilson opened the briefing with a statement.
“I pray the everyone continues to pray for Damar and his family. To see that hit the other night, and see him drop to the ground, it was devastating to watch. That could be any of us,” Wilson said in part.
When asked about seeing something like that happen in the game he loves and has worked so hard to play his whole life, Wilson offered some great perspective.
“People always say ‘you’ll die for this game’ and everything else. But when it’s really life on the line, like we saw the other night, and somebody’s heart stops, it changes your perspective even that much more. Life is so much bigger than this game,” Wilson said.
On Tuesday, Wilson and his wife Ciara donated $13,333 to Hamlin’s GoFundMe page supporting a toy drive. $10,000 came from the couple personally, with an additional $3,333 coming from Wilson’s ‘Why Not You’ foundation.
“This game is important, it’s significant, it’s something that we all care about and it all brings us joy. But it’s also not the lasting thing. I believe Damar has a child and everything else, those things matter most. Just to experience that, just to watch that, glad that he’s (getting better),” Wilson said.
***
