ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is breathing on his own and able to talk after having his breathing tube removed, his agent said Friday — the latest step in his remarkable recovery in the four days since going into cardiac arrest and being resuscitated on the field during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bills said on Twitter that Hamlin even joined the Friday morning team meeting by FaceTime, and told them “love you boys.” In a statement, the team said Hamlin’s “neurologic function remains intact and he has been able to talk to his family and care team.”
Agent Ira Turner was unable to provide any other details in a text sent Friday morning to The Associated Press. The development was first reported by The Athletic.
The 24-year-old Hamlin was still listed Thursday in critical condition in the intensive care unit of the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. Aside from being able to communicate by writing, Hamlin was also able to grip people’s hands.
“His first question that he wrote when he started to awaken was, ‘Did we win?′” Pritts said. “So we know that it’s not only that the lights are on. We know that he’s home. And it appears that all the cylinders are firing within his brain, which is greatly gratifying for all of us.”
Playoff picture
The NFL won’t resume the Bills-Bengals game that was suspended Monday night after Hamlin collapsed.
The NFL said the decision announced Thursday creates “potential competitive inequities in certain playoff scenarios.”
However, the league said “not playing the Buffalo-Cincinnati game to its conclusion will have no effect on which clubs qualify for the postseason. No club would qualify for the postseason and no club will be eliminated based on the outcome of this game.”
The league said clubs on Friday, in a special league meeting, would consider a resolution recommended by the commissioner and approved today by the Competition Committee.
The game had major playoff implications.
Buffalo entered Monday night needing a win to maintain the AFC’s No. 1 seed, currently held by the Kansas City Chiefs currently hold that spot.
The Bengals had a chance to earn that top seed with two more wins and a loss by the Chiefs.
If the Bengals had lost to the Bills and then to the Ravens, Baltimore would have won the division with a victory over Cincinnati on Sunday. But the Ravens remain 1 1/2 games behind the Bengals.
Sunday’s game still has meaning for both teams as they try to improve their playoff seeding.