Ryan Clark played 13 seasons in the NFL among three different teams before he became an NFL analyst and he brought perspective to the terrifying situation Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is dealing with.
Clark was with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2007 when he suffered a medical emergency during a game against the Broncos in Denver. Clark was rushed to a hospital after experiencing severe pain in his side and it turned out he suffered a splenic infarction due to a sickle cell trait he was diagnosed with as a child. The high altitude of the Broncos’ stadium exacerbated his situation.
Clark was in his late 20s and played safety when he experienced his traumatic situation. He was eventually cleared to return to the field and remained with the Steelers when they won the Super Bowl during the 2008 season. He would play for Washington and the New York Giants as well.
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Joe Burrow #9 of the Cincinnati Bengals kneels with Jordan Poyer #21 of the Buffalo Bills after Damar Hamlin #3 sustained an injury during the first quarter of an NFL football game at Paycor Stadium on January 2, 2023 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
(Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
He appeared on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” on Monday night and early Tuesday morning as the Bills revealed Hamlin, who is only 24, suffered cardiac arrest after a hit on Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins.
“It’s the most afraid I’ve ever been watching a football game,” Clark told anchor Michael Eaves of what he witnessed during the Bills-Bengals game. “It was the first time football, a game that so many cliches are used about what you’re willing to give this game. We hear guys always say, ‘I’d die for this’ or ‘I’d give my life for this.’ We may have watched a player actually do that tonight.
“I said this coming up the elevator – usually, when you see a guy stand up, he stays up. We’re talking about the most fit, the most physical, the most macho, the healthiest men in the world and he takes what looks like a routine hit, he falls back to the ground and when you watch someone fall to the ground lifeless that’s different than seeing someone with head trauma. That’s different than seeing someone who hurts their ACL.”
Clark said everyone who was on the field involved in the game saw something “they have never seen.”
BILLS’ DAMAR HAMLIN’S TERRIFYING ORDEAL SHOCKS NFL EXEC: ‘NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT’
Safety Ryan Clark of the Pittsburgh Steelers looks on from the sideline during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on December 15, 2013 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
(George Gojkovich/Getty Images)
“The lives of Damar Hamlin and his family, the lives of the Buffalo Bills, the lives of the Cincinnati Bengals, are forever changed tonight in a split second. That’s how fast it can happen,” Clark continued. “And so something that you always wanted to do with your entire life, something that you love, something that you said to everybody around you, I would give anything to have this – we saw Damar Hamlin do that.
“And all I can say thinking about those players, thinking about my reaction, listening to you try to answer or how to pose this question to me, Eaves, we were not ready for this. We were not prepared for this.”
Clark then opened up about a conversation he had with colleague Marcus Spears, who also played in the NFL.
“I said, ‘At 24, I didn’t even know I could die.’ And this young man is faced with that playing a game he loves.”
The scary incident occurred with 5:58 remaining in the first quarter and Cincinnati leading the game, 7-3. The Bengals were on their second drive of the game when quarterback Joe Burrow threw a pass to Tee Higgins. Hamlin came over to make a tackle to end the play.
Hamlin was on the ground for a while as he received CPR from the medical staff on the ground before he was put into the ambulance. Hamlin was being rushed to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
Damar Hamlin #3 of the Buffalo Bills after a game against the Tennessee Titans at Highmark Stadium on September 19, 2022 in Orchard Park, New York.
(Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)
The NFL later announced it postponed the game between the Bills and Bengals.
The Bills selected Hamlin with the No. 212 overall pick in the sixth round of the 2021 draft. He played in 14 games last season – mostly on special teams – in his rookie season.
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Hamlin, 24, was playing his 16th game of the season. He had seen more time on the field as he recorded 91 tackles and 1.5 sacks.
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