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Kirk Irwin

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is in critical condition at a Cincinnati emergency room after he collapsed on the field and was given CPR in a frightening scene during the first quarter of Monday night’s game against the Bengals. The NFL later announced the game would be postponed and that Commissioner Roger Goodell made the decision.

Hamlin absorbed a hard hit to his upper body, stood up and then collapsed to the ground, his body limp. Medical personnel rushed to him with extreme urgency and, according to reports, administered CPR on the field before loading him into an ambulance and transporting him to University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

Players on both teams encircled Hamlin while he was on the field with tears in their eyes and horrified countenances. Initially, according to ESPN, officials told players they would have five minutes to warm up before resuming the game. NFL Executive Vice President Troy Vincent adamantly refuted that claim, <a href="https://twitter.com/MarkMaske/status/1610144915064852482" target=_blank>saying </a>that the league office never discussed resuming play. After conversations between coaches Zac Taylor and Sean McDermott, players retreated to the locker rooms and officials announced the game would be temporarily postponed. The NFL later announced the game would be postponed.

The hospital treating Damar Hamlin does not plan to hold a news conference or provide further updates on Hamlin’s condition tonight, according to multiple reporters at University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

Ira Turner, Hamlin’s agent, told NFL Network he does not have an update on Hamlin.

Adam Kilgore

In 2020, while he was a college football player at Pittsburgh, Damar Hamlin started a toy drive. He aimed to raise $2,500 for Kelly and Nina’s Daycare Center in his hometown of McKees Rocks, Pa., outside of Pittsburgh.

“As I embark on my journey to the NFL, I will never forget where I come from and I am committed to using my platform to positively impact the community that raised me,” Hamlin wrote on a <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/mxksc-the-chasing-ms-foundation-community-toy-drive" target="_blank">GoFundMe page</a>.

The toy drive surfaced Monday night after Hamlin suffered a horrifying injury that placed him in critical condition at a Cincinnati hospital. Donations poured in, almost all of them in small amounts from NFL fans who left notes of support. By shortly after 11 p.m., the toy drive’s fundraising page had received more than $900,000.

Damar Hamlin’s vital signs returned to normal and doctors at University of Cincinnati Medical Center intubated him, Hamlin’s marketing representative Jordon Rooney said on Twitter. The NFL previously said that Hamlin is in critical condition. Hospital officials are expected to provide further updates later.

Bills Hamlin Football

Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills safety who collapsed on the field during “Monday Night Football,” is a Pittsburgh-area native who has credited his parents for helping him navigate the adversity of his childhood and reach the NFL.

Hamlin, 24, grew up in McKees Rocks, Pa., a northwest suburb of Pittsburgh, and became a star defensive back at Pittsburgh Central Catholic. He continued his ascent at the University of Pittsburgh, and as a redshirt senior, the team named him a captain. In 2020, a season challenged by the coronavirus, Hamlin led the Panthers with 67 tackles and seven passes defended. He received second-team all-ACC honors.

In 2021, Buffalo picked him in the sixth round of the NFL Draft. Hamlin was a reserve as a rookie, mostly playing on special teams, but this year, after an injury to starting safety Micah Hyde, he stepped into a critical role. Hamlin proved a steady starter for the Super Bowl contenders and had a breakout performance against the New York Jets. In a Week 9 loss, Hamlin tallied one quarterback hit and 12 tackles (one for loss).

During Hamlin’s rise, several articles described his hometown — known as “The Rocks” — as a hardscrabble place. Growing up, his father Mario once turned to selling drugs, according to <a href="https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/sports/football/nfl/bills/2021/08/19/damar-hamlin-buffalo-bills-rookie-overcame-adversity-university-pittsburgh/8183800002/" target=_blank>a 2021 story by the Rochester Democrat &amp; Chronicle</a>. Mario spent 3½ years in prison, but after he was released, Hamlin said his father and mother Nina were critical in his upbringing.

“I would just really give all that credit to my parents, that’s really like the biggest difference that I’ve seen in everyone’s lives that was around me growing up,” Hamlin told the D&amp;C. “Just that fact of having two parents in my life that were dedicated to me and all into me, every move from being little to growing up.”

Sam Fortier

Buffalo Bills v Cincinnati Bengals

Players crowded midfield Monday night at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati after Damar Hamlin, a 24-year-old safety for the Buffalo Bills, collapsed on the field during the first quarter. Buffalo players and coaches dropped to their knees and gathered in prayer as medical officials tended to Hamlin, administering “many minutes” of CPR, according to ESPN’s broadcast. Some of Hamlin’s Buffalo teammates <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/02/damar-hamlin-injury-nfl-reacts/?itid=lk_inline_manual_27" target=_blank>paced the field with tears in their eyes</a> before kneeling in anguish and shock.

Bills receiver Stefon Diggs stood on the field staring straight ahead as tears welled up in his eyes. “Come on. Come on,” he was seen saying.

ESPN’s broadcast showed fullback Reggie Gilliam holding hands with tight end Dawson Knox as they stood on the field and prayed.

Quarterbacks Josh Allen and Joe Burrow, both teary-eyed, embraced on the field. At one point, Bills coach Sean McDermott and Bengals coach Zac Taylor gathered on the field with officials, then led their teams to their respective locker rooms.

Shortly after 10 p.m. Eastern time, the league suspended play for the remainder of the evening.

“The NFL is a big business, and the NFL has to continue doing business, and the NFL has to continue entertaining,” former Washington safety and current ESPN analyst Ryan Clark said on the network’s broadcast. “But if the NFL doesn’t send somebody into these locker rooms, if the NFL isn’t flying people to Cincinnati right now or to Buffalo or wherever they’re going right now, they are missing the point. The point is make sure these men are all right, and then you can play football. Because what I’m going to tell you is, if you put them out there tomorrow, you’re going to get a trash game anyway because ... what’s important is Damar Hamlin.”

As a wave of shock rushed over the stadium, current and former players and others throughout the sports world shared prayers and messages of hope on social media.

Devon Still, a former second-round pick by the Bengals, <a href="https://twitter.com/Dev_Still71/status/1610111645891575809" target=_blank>tweeted</a>: “This game is a dream for so many, but can quickly turn into a nightmare. Praying that Damar pulls through.”

Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier, who suffered a career-ending spinal cord injury on a hit in 2017, was among the many who <a href="https://twitter.com/RyanShazier/status/1610094571954012162" target=_blank>urged</a> prayer for Hamlin and his family.

Others around the sports world encouraged the same.

“Pls [prayer emoji] for Damar Hamlin," famed basketball commentator Dick Vitale <a href="https://twitter.com/DickieV/status/1610099333235351556" target=_blank>tweeted</a>. "I’ve never seen an incident like this in all my life…praying for some good news! Football is the least important thing right now.”

<a href="https://twitter.com/PatrickMahomes/status/1610096274895765504?s=20&t=--hIFPhRoPI0JOGA7yCiZA" target=_blank>Added</a> quarterback Patrick Mahomes: “Praying hard.. please be okay man.”

LeBron James <a href="https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1610117470186004480?s=20&t=--hIFPhRoPI0JOGA7yCiZA" target=_blank>retweeted a video</a> from earlier in the season of Hamlin hugging his family before a game. Former tight end Rob Gronkowski recirculated <a href="https://twitter.com/BuffaloBills/status/1610097661331341312?s=20&t=--hIFPhRoPI0JOGA7yCiZA" target=_blank>a tweet from the Bills’ official account</a> that included a photo of the team gathering in prayer.

“All the love and many prayers for Damar, his family, and the #BillsMafia We are with you,” <a href="https://twitter.com/RobGronkowski/status/1610123787265052673" target=_blank>Gronkowski wrote</a>.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/02/damar-hamlin-injury-nfl-reacts/?itid=lk_inline_manual_56" target=_blank>Read the full story</a>

Nicki Jhabvala

The <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/02/espn-damar-hamlin-bengals-bills/?itid=lk_inline_manual_58" target=_blank>eerie and heartbreaking scene that unfolded on the field</a> in the aftermath of Damar Hamlin’s collapse Monday night was unprecedented for a football broadcast.

ESPN’s broadcast initially cut to a series of commercials as Hamlin was attended to, common for injuries during NFL games. Upon return from the break, the telecast showed the replay of Hamlin tackling Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins, standing up, wobbling, then collapsing. ESPN then cut to another commercial.

After several ads, the telecast returned to show an ambulance on the field. Bills quarterback Josh Allen was shown with his face in his hands. Several Bills players were shown with stunned faces and tears. “There’s just nothing to say,” play-by-play voice Joe Buck said, before the telecast went to commercial again.

The telecast returned with a report from sideline reporter Lisa Salters who said medical personnel had been working on Hamlin for nine minutes, but the extent of the injury was unknown. The players, Buck later said, were so tight around Hamlin that cameras couldn’t show him. “Maybe that’s for the best,” Buck said.

The broadcast eventually largely shifted to the studio, where Suzy Kolber, former player Booger McFarland and reporter Adam Schefter offered their views.

“We’ve never seen anything like that before,” McFarland said at one point.

A few minutes later, ESPN shifted to Scott Van Pelt in its Washington “SportsCenter” studio, where former player Ryan Clark offered his reaction.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/02/espn-damar-hamlin-bengals-bills/?itid=lk_inline_manual_66" target=_blank>Read the full story</a>

Ben Strauss

The NFL suspended the Bills-Bengals “Monday Night Football” game, the league announced, after Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a frightening injury that required CPR on the field before an ambulance drove him to a local emergency room. Hamlin is in critical condition, the NFL said.

Players were originally told they would be given five minutes to warm up after the ambulance left Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. After Coaches Zac Taylor and Sean McDermott conversed, officials quickly reversed the decision and players retreated to their locker rooms.

Bills safety Damar Hamlin was taken in an ambulance to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center’s emergency room, according to local television station WLWT.

At Paycor Stadium, Bills and Bengals shook hands and hugged one another outside their locker rooms, according to ESPN’s broadcast, a sign that the game will likely be postponed.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin was placed on a stretcher and was taken from the field in an ambulance after collapsing on the field in a frightening scene during the first quarter of Monday night’s game in Cincinnati against the Bengals.

Medical personnel rushed to treat Hamlin as players on both teams gathered nearby on the field. Members of the medical staff administered CPR to Hamlin, according to ESPN, which was broadcasting the game. Oxygen was given to him, the network reported.

The game was suspended after a significant delay. The suspension of play was announced after coaches Sean McDermott of the Bills and Zac Taylor of the Bengals spoke with the on-field officials. ESPN initially had reported the game would resume after a short break.

Details about his condition were not immediately available.

Hamlin was involved in a violent collision with Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins on a first-quarter play. Hamlin tackled Higgins following a catch. Hamlin got to his feet briefly, then fell backward to the turf. Other players were shown praying or kneeling on the field. Some players were crying and others were hugging one another.

Mark Maske

The Bills answered the Bengals’ opening-possession touchdown with a field goal on their first drive.

Kicker Tyler Bass connected from 25 yards. But Josh Allen was seen limping a bit after being hit in his lower left leg following a throw on the drive.

The Bills had a first down at the Cincinnati 14-yard line but couldn’t reach the end zone. Allen threw an incompletion toward wide receiver Cole Beasley on third and three from the 7-yard line.

Allen had completions of 17 and nine yards to wideout Stefon Diggs on the drive. Tailback James Cook provided runs of 11 and seven yards. <b>(Bengals 7, Bills 3 with 6:52 left in the first quarter)</b>

The Bengals are off to a great start in their huge Monday night matchup with the Bills.

They moved straight down the field on the game’s opening possession, getting a touchdown on a 14-yard pass from Joe Burrow to wide receiver Tyler Boyd. Burrow had time in the pocket and zipped a throw over the middle to Boyd, who made the catch near the back of the end zone.

Burrow took a deep shot to wideout Ja’Marr Chase on the game’s opening snap from scrimmage, resulting in a 29-yard pass interference penalty against Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White. A 21-yard completion from Burrow to tight end Hayden Hurst gave the Bengals a first down at the Buffalo 14-yard line. They scored on the next play. <b>(Bengals 7, Bills 0 with 11:53 left in the first quarter)</b>

NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Green Bay Packers

Zombies are suddenly thriving in the NFL. Teams left for dead weeks ago are stumbling and lurching toward Week 18, suddenly on a mission to devour a playoff spot. The Packers were 4-8 and on the brink of considering whether to launch their quarterback succession plan. The Patriots were an embarrassment that flung the worst lateral in football history. But owing to perfectly calibrated wreckage around their own victories, both can make the postseason with one more win. If they don’t, the Lions and Steelers — once 1-6 and 2-6, respectively — might take those spots.

Here is what to know after Week 17, with only the “Monday Night Football” showdown between the Bills and the Bengals left to play.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/02/nfl-patriots-packers-playoffs-eagles/?itid=lk_inline_manual_95" target=_blank>Read the full story</a>

Panthers Buccaneers Football

Tom Brady has reached the playoffs in his post-retirement season, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinched the NFC South title.

Fellow legendary quarterback Aaron Rodgers has the Green Bay Packers, amazingly, on the doorstep of the postseason.

The New York Giants punched their postseason ticket in Year 1 of their latest organizational reboot.

So it went in Week 17 on the second-to-last Sunday of the NFL’s regular season.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/01/nfl-analysis-nfc-east-eagles/?itid=lk_inline_manual_102" target=_blank>Read the full story</a>

Bills Bears Football

The Bills and Bengals square off in Cincinnati in one of the best and most consequential “Monday Night Football” games in league history.

Their 23 combined victories are tied for the most by two teams in a season entering a Monday night matchup.

The Bills need a triumph to remain ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC’s top playoff seed entering the final weekend of the regular season; they already have clinched the AFC East title. The Bengals can secure the AFC North crown and stay in the running for the No. 1 seed with a victory; they already have wrapped up a postseason berth. A loss Monday by the Bengals would make their game Sunday at home against the Baltimore Ravens for the division title.

The Bills <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/10/04/bills-super-bowl-favorites/?itid=lk_inline_manual_109" target=_blank>have been the leaguewide Super Bowl favorite</a>, in the estimation of many observers, all season. They enter this game on a six-game winning streak despite losing standout pass rusher Von Miller to a season-ending knee injury.

Quarterback Josh Allen is prominent in the league MVP conversations. As they vie with the Chiefs and Bengals for AFC supremacy, the Bills will try to tilt the competition in their favor by ensuring the road to the Super Bowl in the AFC goes through Orchard Park, N.Y.

But it is the Bengals, not the Bills or Chiefs, who are the defending AFC champs. In the season following their Super Bowl defeat to the Los Angeles Rams, they are not a surprising success story any longer. Quarterback Joe Burrow has managed to keep the Bengals <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/20/bengals-super-bowl-hopes-joe-burrow/?itid=lk_inline_manual_111" target=_blank>among the league’s upper tier of contenders</a>. Burrow said during a news conference Thursday that this game is not a measuring stick for the Bengals. They are too accomplished to take such an approach, he said.

Joe Burrow’s Bengals have surged back into the Super Bowl picture

“We’ve beaten everybody,” Burrow said. “We know we can play against everybody. We’ve done it in the biggest of moments. So … we’re treating every game the same. We’ve played everybody the last two years. We haven’t played the Bills yet. So that will be a fun challenge.”

The Bengals have won seven straight and nine of their past 10 games. But they’ve had difficulty in recent weeks playing a complete game. They trailed, 17-0, in the first half of a Dec. 18 game in Tampa before scoring 34 straight points in a 34-23 victory over the Buccaneers. Six days later in Foxborough, Mass., they nearly allowed a 22-0 lead over the Patriots slip away, surrendering 18 unanswered points before forcing a late fumble by New England tailback Rhamondre Stevenson to preserve the triumph.

Associated Press Sports Editors, 2004, fifth place in breaking news story over 250,000 circulation with Leonard Shapiro

Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association, 2003 editorial contest, first place sports story dailies over 75,000

Associated Press Sports Editors, 1997, honorable mention in best news story over 175,000 circulation

War Without Death: A Year of Extreme Competition in Pro Football's NFC East

University of Virginia, BA in rhetoric and communications

Mark Maske covers the NFL for The Washington Post. He has covered the NFL and the Washington Football Team since 1998. He previously covered baseball, the Baltimore Orioles, the effort to bring a major league team to Washington, and colleges.

APSE Finalist, beat writing, 2017

Member of Pulitzer Prize team for breaking news, 2007

Syracuse University, attended 

Adam Kilgore covers national sports for The Washington Post. Previously, he served as The Post's Washington Nationals beat writer from 2010 to 2014.

Syracuse University, B.S. in magazine journalism

Sam Fortier is a beat writer for The Post covering Washington's NFL team.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, BA in journalism

Nicki Jhabvala joined The Washington Post in July 2020 after spending six years covering the Denver Broncos, first for the Denver Post (2014-2018) and later the Athletic (2018-2020). She has also been an editor and producer for the New York Times, Sports on Earth and Sports Illustrated.

PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing

Indentured: The Inside Story of the Rebellion Against the NCAA

Ithaca College

Ben Strauss covers sports and media for The Washington Post.

NFL suspends Bengals-Bills game, Damar Hamlin hospitalized after on-field collapse

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