Monday Night Football postponed after Buffalo Bills safety collapses; NFL says player in critical condition

CINCINNATI (AP/WNCN) — The Monday night NFL game between Buffalo and Cincinnati was suspended for the night after Bills’ Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field and was later in critical condition, according to the NFL.

Monday Night Football earlier was suspended temporarily after the safety collapsed, was administered CPR and taken off of the field in an ambulance following a hit on Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins in the first quarter.

Hamlin, 24, collided with Higgins after a completion with 5:58 remaining in the first quarter. He got to his feet and then fell backward and lay motionless. He was surrounded by stunned players from both teams, and when he was taken off the field 16 minutes later, the Bills gathered in prayer.

Just after 10 p.m., the NFL said Hamlin was in critical condition at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

“The game is so secondary to everything else right now. Everyone is praying for Hamlin. This moment is chilling, heartbreaking,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter said on Monday Night Football’s round table as the NFL cut away from on-field coverage.

Many fellow NFL players and teams and others in the sports world and beyond quickly offered their support and prayers on social media for Hamlin, who the NFL said was in critical condition at a hospital.

Schefter, Booger McFarland and Suzy Kolber were doing wall-to-wall coverage earlier as the NFL suspended the game.

“No one’s been through this,” longtime NFL quarterback Troy Aikman said on the telecast. “I’ve never seen anything like it, either.”

While medical personnel were gathered around Hamlin, his uniform was cut off and he received CPR. It also appeared as if he was given oxygen, according to ESPN.

Hamlin was strapped to a backboard before he was moved into the ambulance.

The game is suspended indefinitely after the injury and players walked off the field slowly following Bills head coach Sean McDermott telling his team to head to the locker room.

Originally, announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman said teams would have five minutes to warm back up, but McDermott appeared to say ‘no’, CBS 17’s Kayla Morton reports, and sent his team to the locker room.

The 24-year-old Hamlin is in his second year with the Bills. He didn’t see much playing time as a rookie but has been a much bigger part of Buffalo’s defense this season. Entering the game, the 6-foot, 200-pound Hamlin had 91 tackles, including 63 solo tackles, and 1 1/2 sacks.

A tweet from the Pitt football account was simple and clear: “Damar Hamlin is the best of us. We love you, 3,” the tweet said, referring to Hamlin by his college jersey number. “Praying for you.”

The Bengals led 7-3 in the first quarter of a game between teams vying for the top playoff seed in the AFC. Cincinnati entered at 11-4 and leading the AFC North by one game over Baltimore, while AFC East champion Buffalo was 12-3.

The aftermath of the injury was reminiscent of when Bills tight end Kevin Everett lay motionless on the field after making a tackle on the second-half opening kickoff in Buffalo’s 2007 season-opening game against the Denver Broncos.