“Omg Yes!” - NFL fans celebrate Damar Hamlin regaining consciousness and responsiveness for first time since Monday Night Football collapse

By Ian Van Roy

Modified Jan 05, 2023 16:42 GMT

Allegiant Stadium Video Board Lit Up In Support Of Hospitalized Buffalo Bills Player Damar Hamlin

When Damar Hamlin collapsed on Monday Night Football, fans, players, owners, teams, and commentators looked on in horror as the game came to a stop. The Bills safety was immobile and needed CPR. He was soon rushed to the hospital and sedated. Since falling on Monday Night Football, he had been unresponsive.

It was reported on Thursday that Hamlin opened his eyes on Wednesday. Fans collectively exhaled and took to social media in droves to celebrate his recovery. Here are some of the top reactions:

What does Damar Hamlin regaining consciousness mean for the NFL?

In the days between Hamlin's collapse and the Bills safety opening his eyes, the league was upfront about prioritizing Hamlin's health over the game. With the safety responsive and in his healthiest condition since Monday, the NFL will look at the the fixture list.

The league still has the Bengals-Bills matchup in limbo after the events of Monday Night Football. The game wasn't just a run-of-the-mill contest featuring teams out of the playoff hunt. The game had two teams within range of earning the number-one seed in the AFC.

Homefield advantage and the bye could change hands based on what happens in the game. As a result, the potential Super Bowl matchup and outcome could hinge on what happens in the game. As such, canceling the game outright could jeopardize the legitimacy of the Super Bowl this season.

However, if they decide to play the game, they'll need to find a time. Week 18 is in a few days and after that, it is the start of the playoffs. Meaning, if the league wants a Week 17 redo, they can either delay the playoffs or have the teams play on a short week. Put simply, there is no clean cut solution.

If they delay the playoffs, it affects the entire league and could give other teams an advantage. One solution that is running under the radar would be to delay the AFC side of the playoffs for one week and allow the NFC side to continue as scheduled. An NFC team would get an extra week off before the Super Bowl, but it would only affect one team.

About the author

Ian brings with him more than 6.5 years of sports writing experience to the Sportskeeda NFL team. He played offensive line in middle school and high school, and also made it to the top 0% matchmaking ranking in MUT play in Madden.

He possesses the quality of identifying unique story angles from quotes in press conferences, social media and interviews. He assimilates facts for his stories with a lawyer-like precision and verifies each and every piece of information.

Ian admires Peyton Manning for his ability to beat teams with his mind despite not being the best athlete, and is also a fan of Tom Brady. The Denver Broncos are his favorite team, and their Super Bowl 50 win in Manning’s last game is etched in his memory forever. Bill Belichick is his all-time favorite coach.

He has also grown to admire the Los Angeles Rams mainly because he and Cooper Kupp went to the same college, Eastern Washington University, with both finishing their college careers at the same time.

In his career so far, Ian has had the privilege of exclusively interviewing Los Angeles Rams General Manager Les Snead, Kwity Paye of the Indianpolis Colts and Cleveland Browns wide receiver Jamari Thrash. When not writing, he likes to play video games and be outdoors.

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