PHILADELPHIA − The Eagles are putting the terrifying Damar Hamlin incident behind them because, as many of the players said, it’s their job to put it behind them.
Compartmentalize. Focus on the next game. And not worry as much about playing a violent sport that Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown likened to “a car crash every time you get tackled.”
Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills safety, remains in critical condition after suffering cardiac arrest while making a tackle in the first quarter Monday night in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
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The Eagles players, like everyone else, saw the scared and worried looks on the faces of the Bills and Bengals; the ambulance coming out onto the field; and paramedics performing CPR on Hamlin before rushing him to the hospital, where he reportedly had to be revived again.
Brown is fully aware that any play could leave him or one of his teammates with a debilitating injury, let alone death.
“It’s devastating,” Brown said. “One, you just hope he’s OK. As a player, you try not to think about those things. You play this physical game. It’s like a car crash every time you get tackled.
“Me personally, I want to go home to my family. When I’m done playing, I want to be able to run around with my kids, and play with my kids. This game is serious.”
The Eagles nearly experienced this themselves one day before Hamlin’s injury when defensive end Josh Sweat made a tackle against the New Orleans Saints, then lay on the Lincoln Financial Field turf face down for several minutes, not moving his legs.
Sweat was slowly lifted onto a cart and taken to a hospital. He was diagnosed with a neck injury and released Sunday night. His status for the Eagles’ game against the Giants on Sunday isn’t known yet.
Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, one of Sweat’s closest friends, said he rushed over when he saw Sweat lying motionless on the ground, asking if he’s OK. He said he felt better once Sweat responded, then he told Sweat: ‘Alright. Just don’t move, (EMTs) are coming.’
“That’s one of those scary things,” Cox added. “It’s a routine play. Josh went to make the tackle. He didn’t get up. He was down for a while. And then (Hamlin’s cardiac arrest) happened the next day.”
How does a player refocus after that?
“It’s a lot … You have to process,” Cox said. “Sometimes, it’s real hard to process, for anybody. When that guy’s laying there and not getting right up, you still have to process and pray that he’s OK.”
Added Brown: “I think the whole world kind of needs time. I think the next down of football is going to be very scary. There’s going to be a lot of emotions. Everybody is trying to get back into the norm.”
Hamlin’s play seemed like the norm, too. He tackled Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins after Higgins caught a pass, something that happens dozens of times in a game. Higgins’ helmet rammed into Hamlin’s chest as both players fell to the ground.
Hamlin stood up after the tackle, then collapsed.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said he watched the play happen live, and like many, his initial reaction was “shock.”
“There’s a human side to this, too, of (the players) see those things and of course, it’s going to affect us in different ways,” Sirianni said. “Not everybody is going to be affected the same way on it.”
Sirianni said the Eagles provide players with counseling for mental health issues.
The Eagles have a Player Engagement Staff led by Paul Lancaster and Kathy Mair. They also have mental health clinicians who work in conjunction with the Eagles’ medical team. And Sirianni said he and the coaches are available for players who want to talk.
After all, Sirianni has often said “connecting” is one of his core values.
“This is an opportunity for us to practice what we preach,” Sirianni said. “Do we really believe the connecting thing, or is it all just B.S.? This is our opportunity to not only say we’re there for you guys, but also be there for them.”
Sirianni said he hasn’t heard from any player saying he doesn’t feel comfortable playing Sunday because of what happened to Hamlin.
“That has not been the focus of the conversations,” Sirianni said. “The focus of the conversations is how can we be there for you. So, we’re not even to that point yet. We might not ever get to that point. It’s just we want to be there for these guys in a tough time, and that’s where we are right now.”
It’s even tougher for those players on the Eagles who know Hamlin. That includes Brown, who became friends with Hamlin in high school at the Nike Opening 7-on-7 Invitational in Oregon, a recruiting showcase held annually for top skill position players.
Eagles cornerback Avonte Maddox was teammates with Hamlin at the University of Pittsburgh. Running back Miles Sanders participated in a clinic with Hamlin and others in Pittsburgh, near where both players grew up in the summer of 2021.
“From the time I got to know him coming out of high school up until now, he’s just a genuine person,” Brown said. “He’s very nice, polite, very cool guy. I never had a problem with him. I never even heard anything bad about him. It sucks that it just happened to a great guy like that, man.”
But there’s a game to play Sunday. So the Eagles pressed on Wednesday in their preparation for the Giants. They have Hamlin in their minds, and the knowledge that it could have been any one of them, too.
“You definitely think about the risk that you take as a player when stuff like that happens,” Eagles cornerback James Bradberry said. “But this is what I signed up for. This is my job. And I’m expected to go out there and play, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
