Damar Hamlin is rooting for his Buffalo Bills teammates as they play their first game since he suffered a cardiac arrest during the “Monday Night Football” matchup on Jan. 2.
Two minutes before the Bills faced the New England Patriots on Sunday, Jan. 8, the 24-year-old safety posted a picture on Twitter of him sitting in his hospital bed while making a heart with his hands.
“GAMETIME!!!” he wrote before tagging his team and adding a blue heart emoji.
In the photo, Hamlin wore a shirt with his number three that read “Love For Damar.” He also sported a hat with his number.
He quickly sent a follow-up tweet to celebrate Bills kick returner Nyheim Hines opening the game with a 96-yard touchdown return.
Hamlin simply said, “OMFG!!!!!!!!!!!!!” as fans watched the Bills cheer and a few players become emotional.
After the impressive scoring drive, the official Bills Twitter account uploaded a graphic that said it had been three years and three months since the team’s last kickoff return for a touchdown.
“Meant to be,” the tweet said with the hashtags “LoveForDamar” and “ForDamar.”
Hamlin retweeted the post and wrote, “God Behind All This No Coincidence..” with the number three.
He also tweeted sweet messages for Hines and tight end Dawson Knox.
“That’s My Quarterback,” he said in response to a video of teammate Josh Allen arriving for the Bills’ game while donning a sweatshirt with the number three.
The second-year NFL star continued on Instagram to express his gratitude for the support he has received since he collapsed on the field.
He filled his Instagram stories with snaps of players like Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady sporting warmup gear and jerseys that said “Hamlin Strong” and “Love For Damar.”
He also shared footage from teams like the Cincinnati Bengals, Tennessee Titans, New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers that had multiple “Love For Damar” jerseys hanging in their locker rooms.
On the Bills Instagram page, the team uploaded a video of the players running out onto the field while holding flags that said “Pray For Damar.” The caption said, “You’re right here with us, @d.ham3.”
A joint Instagram post from the Bills and the NFL highlighted how multiple teams outlined the number three on their fields to show support for Hamlin.
“#ForDamar all across the league,” the caption for the slideshow said.
On Jan. 7, Hamlin returned to social media with his first public message since the Cincinnati Bengals game when he was injured.
“When you put real love out into the world it comes back to you 3x’s as much,” he wrote on Instagram. “The Love has been overwhelming, but I’m thankful for every single person that prayed for me and reached out. We brung the world back together behind this. If you know me you know this only gone make me stronger. On a long road keep praying for me!”
He shared a similar message on Twitter, as well.
During the “Monday Night Football” game, Hamlin tackled Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins in the first quarter and briefly stood up before collapsing onto his back.
He was given CPR on the field for several minutes before he was taken to the University of Cincinnati’s Level 1 trauma center.
The Bills have kept fans updated on Hamlin’s recovery following his cardiac arrest.
On Jan 7, the team said, “Per the physicians at UC Medical Center, Damar is making continued progress in his recovery yet remains in critical condition. He continues to breathe on his own and his neurological function is excellent.”
The cause of Hamlin’s cardiac arrest has not been confirmed.