Orchard Park, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin made the cut, a person with direct knowledge of the decision confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Bills have not announced their final cuts in paring their roster to 53 players. The NFL Network first reported the news regarding Hamlin, whose bid to resume his football career approaches completion after his near-death experience during a game at Cincinnati in January.
Though general manager Brandon Beane has stressed changes could still be made to the roster before the Bills open their season at the New York Jets on Sept. 11, what’s undeniable is the courage Hamlin has shown in reaching this milestone of his comeback by reclaiming a backup role behind starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.
What began as a national theme of “Prayers For Hamlin” has turned to praise for Hamlin, who put aside hints of trepidation in each step of his recovery. It’s a journey that’s taken the 25-year-old from being placed in a medically induced coma after going into cardiac arrest and needing to be resuscitated on the field, to returning to the turf to take and deliver hits at full speed during practice and three preseason game appearances in one of North America’s most violent professional sport.
“I made the choice that I wanted to play, you know, it wasn’t nobody else’s choice but mine,” Hamlin said of his approach after a three-tackle outing in Buffalo’s preseason-opening win against Indianapolis three weeks ago. “So, when you see my cleats laced up and my helmet and shoulder pads on, there ain’t gonna be no hesitation.”
A week later in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Hamlin was selected to take the field as a captain for the coin flip before the Bills’ game against the Steelers.
“It was real special, like a moment of serendipity, just like life coming full circle for me,” he said following the game in which finished with three more tackles. “It’s just something indescribable.”
Overall, Hamlin finished the preseason with nine solo tackles and one assist while playing 80 defensive snaps and 19 more on special teams.
Coach Sean McDermott all but assured Hamlin’s place on the roster was secure two weeks ago by saying the player had little more to prove.
“From my non-medical standpoint, I think he’s checked all the boxes as far as that goes,” McDermott said. “There’s just been enough of a sample where you’re saying, he’s executed well and come out of that healthy.”
Now the question is how much more playing time he’ll get in returning to a backup role. Hamlin’s extensive playing experience in his second NFL season last year — he had 13 starts — was the result of him filling in after Hyde sustained a season-ending neck injury.
However little or much playing time he sees against the Jets, Hamlin’s recovery will have come full circle in prime-time settings. He was hurt on a Monday night broadcast, and the Bills open on a Monday night in what should be an emotionally charged setting honoring the 22nd anniversary of 9-11.
Hamlin has approached each step of his recovery — from being discharged from the hospital on Jan. 11 to news of doctors clearing him to resume practicing in late April to his first padded practice on July 31 — by focusing on one moment at a time.
To peek too far ahead, he said, would be emotionally overwhelming. At the same time, Hamlin’s not been one to look back, either, while dealing with the nation-wide attention he’s attracted.
“I honestly would love to do this whole process under a rock, getting myself together and then pop back out when I feel like my best,” Hamlin once said. “But I think there’s strength in going through a process in front of everybody’s eyes. It shows vulnerability and shows strength, shows perseverance, and that’s things I would love to stand for.”
Bills’ Von Miller to miss first 4 games on physically unable to perform list
Orchard Park, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills top pass-rusher Von Miller will open the season on the physically unable to perform list in allowing him to continue recovering from a torn right knee ligament, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because the team has not yet announced the move coming on the day NFL teams have to cut their rosters to 53 players. ESPN.com first reported the decision.
Miller will be required to miss at least the first four games of the season.
Though Miller hoped to be ready for the start of the season, the move was expected after the 12th-year player has yet to be cleared for practice.
Miller was hurt in a 28-25 win at the Detroit Lions on Nov. 24 and had surgery a few weeks later.
Broncos acquiring kicker Wil Lutz from Saints
Englewood, Colo. — The Denver Broncos are acquiring Wil Lutz from the New Orleans Saints, reuniting the veteran kicker with coach Sean Payton, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the teams didn’t immediately announce the deal in which the Saints will receive a 2024 seventh-round draft pick from Denver.
This means New Orleans will go with undrafted rookie Blake Grupe from Notre Dame. He was 5-for-6 in the preseason with his only miss from 60 yards.
The Broncos released veteran Brandon McManus in the spring and brought in veterans Elliott Fry and Brett Maher for a camp competition. Fry was waived with an injury designation after the preseason opener where he missed a field goal.
Maher, who was jettisoned by the Dallas Cowboys in the offseason following his extra point meltdown in the playoffs, missed two field goals in the first preseason game before bouncing back to make all four of his attempts and all seven extra points in the last two exhibitions.
Payton had made it clear that Maher hadn’t won the job when Fry was released and was actually competing with kickers across the league.
That included Lutz, 29, who signed with New Orleans after the Baltimore Ravens cut him in 2016.
Lutz has made 84.6% of his field goal attempts in his seven-year NFL career. He made 74.2% of his tries last year after missing 2021 with an injury.
Lutz will see plenty of familiar faces in Denver besides Payton’s.
The Broncos stocked their roster with several former Saints who played for Payton in New Orleans, including tight end Adam Trautman, fullback Michael Burton and wide receivers Marquez Callaway and Lil’Jordan Humphrey.
Personnel dept.
… The NFL placed Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Chris Claybrooks on the commissioner’s exempt list Tuesday following his July arrest on domestic battery and false imprisonment charges.
Claybrooks is not allowed to practice or attend games while on the list. The announcement came as the Jaguars paired down their roster to 53 players.
A fourth-year backup from Memphis, Claybrooks has a pretrial hearing scheduled for Sept. 11 that could provide some clarity on whether the league suspends him, and if so, for how long.
Claybrooks entered a plea of not guilty earlier this month. The domestic battery charge is a misdemeanor, and the false imprisonment charge is a third-degree felony.
The 26-year-old defender was arrested after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office investigated an incident from September 2022. A woman told police she and Claybrooks argued, and when she tried to leave their shared residence, he restrained her, according to an arrest report.
The woman provided investigators with a video showing Claybrooks forcefully grabbing her, moving her back into the home and restraining her upper body, according to the report.
It was the second time Claybrooks has been arrested and charged with domestic assault. He also was arrested in Nashville, Tennessee, in mid-April and charged with misdemeanor domestic assault with bodily injury and vandalism.
Claybrooks allegedly grabbed a cellphone from a woman and damaged it by throwing it to the ground, according to an affidavit. He reached a settlement in that case.