There have been some notable sightings at Buffalo Bills training camp, and Monday brought on an emotional one with Damar Hamlin participating in pads for the first time since January.
Hamlin made his return to practice last month for the first time in six months since having a near-death experience during a game at Cincinnati.
Getting to practice in full pads for the first time in training camp is always an adjustment for players, but for Hamlin, there was an extra focus on how he would respond.
“Awareness is important,” head coach Sean McDermott explained to reporters. “You’ve got X amount of guys out here, and then we had Damar in there as well — we’re trying to make it as normal as possible, but also understanding it may not be quite as normal as we want it to be because of the past. So like I said before, we’re going to support him through this, and up to this point, he’s done a phenomenal job just taking it one day at a time.”
Before getting to participate in pads, Hamlin had previously been limited to individual drills and the stretching portions of practice since the Bills’ series of spring voluntary sessions opened on May 22. The 25-year-old has made it his objective to resume his football career after going into cardiac arrest and needing to be resuscitated on the field after making what appeared to be a routine tackle during a game against the Bengals on Jan. 2.
On Sunday, Bills co-owner Kim Pegula watched training camp practice from the front seat of the family’s SUV on Sunday, making an encouraging and surprising first public appearance in 14 months since experiencing a debilitating cardiac arrest.
-With files from the Associated Press.
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