Damar Hamlin Update: Buffalo Bills safety needs your prayers, well wishes

At the end of the day, football is just a game. Monday Night Football, between the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals, proved that fact once more last night when a terrifying moment took place and fans watched safety Damar Hamlin suddenly collapse on the field.

Hamlin had finished what seemed like an ordinary tackle on Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins. He proceeded to stand up, for just a split-second, only to fall back to the ground in a manner no one expected to see.

With his knees buckling, Hamlin collapsed and within seconds had plenty of medical attention surrounding him.

After a few minutes, the game was put on hold with the assumption that, somehow, these two teams were going to try and play the game Monday night. But, both head coaches, Sean McDermott and Zac Taylor, got together and agreed that simply cannot happen after what had transpired.

The game was postponed, with Hamlin being transferred to a local Cincinnati hospital. Since arriving, Hamlin’s status has been officially updated by the Bills.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest and is in critical condition.

To clarify and provide the utmost, factual information, cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack. According to the Mayo Clinic, cardiac arrest is defined as the “abrupt loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness.”

A simple search of Hamlin’s name will provide you with plenty of speculation, theories and social media doctors. But for now, these are the only facts we have and all we can say is, Hamlin needs your continued prayers and well wishes.

His family needs them as well, as do his teammates and coaches.

If you would like to provide even more support than your thoughts and prayers, you can be one of countless others to donate to Hamlin’s toy drive fundraiser which picked up momentum overnight. To date, it has raised over $3 million — absolutely incredible.

Again, keep Hamlin, his family and loved ones in your thoughts and prayers, and remember: it is always bigger than football.