What did Sean McDermott say to Zac Taylor after Damar Hamlin was rushed off field in an ambulance?

A coach isn’t just someone who calls plays and draws up game plans. A coach is a leader. A coach is there to celebrate the good times and motivate during the bad times. But more than anything, a coach has to be there for his team when they need him most, and on Monday night Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott showed he is not just a coach and a leader in the confines of the gridiron.

McDermott makes decision to pull players off field

On Monday night, the horrific scene of Damar Hamlin collapsing to the ground and medics having to perform CPR just to keep the Bills safety’s heart beating brought the sports world to a halt. As players cried and prayed for their fallen brother no one was sure what to do in the moments after the ambulance transporting Hamlin to the hospital left the field.

Sean McDermott did. The referees made an announcement there would be a five minute warm up time before the teams took to the field again. ESPN cameras caught a conversation between the Bill’s head coach and Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor. While it wasn’t clear what was being discussed between the two head coaches, it became evident after both coaches took their players off the field shortly after the talk.

“When I got over there, the first thing he said was, ‘I need to be at the hospital for Damar, and I shouldn’t be coaching this game,’” said Taylor. McDermott put not just Hamlin, but his players before above everything else in a game that the Bills were playing to keep the top seed in the AFC.

Hamlin still in intensive care

The Bills and Bengals both went to the locker room after players stayed on the field consoling each other and hoping that a member of their football family would be alright. McDermott had the impossible task of going back into the locker room and searching for the right words to console the 52 remaining players still in shock by what they had just gone through. The Bills left Paycor stadium and some players went back to Buffalo, some stayed in Cincinnati.

While it is unknown if McDermott was able to go to UC Medical Center in Cincinnati, star wide receiver Stefan Diggs did get in an Uber and visit Damar Hamlin and his family at the hospital.

The NFL has come under much scrutiny for the way the situation was handled, and for how long it took to postpone the game. Taylor said the NFL never game a time table of when to return to play, instead “It was just let’s let these moments play out and see what the next step is as people get a chance to get their minds right,” he said. “And ultimately that’s what led to the decision there.”

Hamlin remains at UC Medical Center, and is still in intensive care, but showed signs of improvements yesterday and overnight.