Damar Hamlin case: “The NFL is dangerous,” says former Chargers star

The NFL remains shaken by the heart attack Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin has suffered.

The league’s 32 teams joined in prayers wishing a speedy recovery to the 24-year-old who is currently in critical condition at the UC Medical Center at the University of Cincinnati and has also shown positive signs in recent hours.

However, for a former NFL player, what happened Monday night to the Buffalo defensive back is also a call for all players who decide to dedicate themselves to the sport.

Football: A wake-up call

When asked how it might affect the Bills, ex-Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman said that “it’s going to be playing in the minds of a lot of them (players). It was a wake-up call for a lot of people on just the possibilities of how violent this game could be,” he said.

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Merriman, who also had his stint with the Bills, admitted that that doesn’t take away the fact that football “is the best sport in the world”, even with the “certain risk when practicing it.”

Players are human beings

Oftentimes, fans perceive NFL players as superheroes; such is the case of stars like Tom Brady, Josh Allen, and Patrick Mahomes. However, what happened with Hamlin shows that these players are also human beings, and Merriman emphasized that point:

“I think he also brought a human side to it. Many of these players are actually seen as superhuman. This is a human on the ground who could possibly be fighting for his life," Merriman added.

The former NFL player acknowledged that it’s something that probably won’t lead to drastic changes, but acknowledged “how lucky” he was to walk away from the game the way he did and mostly healthy.