Damar Hamlin shows signs of improvement as he remains in ICU, Bills say

CINCINNATI (WXIX) - Damar Hamlin’s health appears to be progressing in the right direction, according to the Buffalo Bills.

Hamlin remains sedated and in critical condition at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, but overnight, the doctors caring for him say they had “promising readings,” ESPN’s Coley Harvey said he was told by family and a friend of the Buffalo Bills safety.

Harvey said he spoke with Jordon Rooney, Hamlin’s friend.

While Rooney could not go into much detail, according to the ESPN reporter, he explained that Hamlin appears to be making progress.

The Bills said Hamlin is “expected to remain under intensive care as his health care team continues to monitor and treat him.”

The friend of the 24-year-old did clarify a comment made by Hamlin’s uncle on Tuesday.

Harvey says he was told by Rooney that Hamlin was only resuscitated once, not twice, as his uncle previously stated.

For Hamlin, his road to recovery is ongoing, Harvey says Rooney told him.

The 24-year-old has spent the past two nights in the ICU at UCMC after suffering a cardiac arrest, the Bills announced Tuesday.

It was a frightening scene on the Paycor Stadium field Monday when Hamlin collapsed during the first quarter of the game between the Bills and Bengals.

The air went out of the stadium as players and fans looked on in shock.

An ambulance rushed onto the field with players from both teams bridging together to create a wall to keep cameras from seeing what has going on.

It would later be learned that emergency personnel had to perform CPR and use an automated external defibrillator on Hamlin, sources told FOX19′s Joe Danneman.

Hamlin was given oxygen, placed on a stretcher, hooked up to an IV and carried into an ambulance that had entered the field.

By the time he was en route to the hospital, his pulse had been restored, but he was still not breathing on his own, Danneman explained.

The players, often described as gridiron gladiators, were visibly shaken. They had just seen their friend, teammate and peer go through one of the scariest moments in NFL history.

The game itself no longer had any meaning.

Hamlin was the only thing on the minds of players and those watching across the nation.

Eventually, the NFL suspended the game as both the Bengals and Bills left the stadium. Some players, like Bills’ wide receiver Stefon Diggs, went to UCMC to support his teammate.

The following day, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the game between the Bengals and Bills would not resume this week. Goodell said no decision has been made on if the game will be played at a later date.

The statement from the NFL says no changes have been made to the Week 18 schedule when Cincinnati plays the Baltimore Ravens.

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