Steelers fans, and much of America, watched in horror as Damar Hamlin sustained a serious injury on Monday Night Football. Many people may have flashed back to a similar incident five years ago. There is probably no one who can understand the feeling more than former Pittsburgh Steeler, Ryan Shazier. Shazier and his co-host Dave Dameshek spoke on Shazier’s podcast, Don’t Call It A Comeback about Hamlin’s injury and the eerie parallels to his own.
Hamlin is a safety for the Buffalo Bills who collapsed on the field during the Bills versus Bengals game in Cincinnati. It was later revealed that Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest. At the time that Shazier and Dameshek recorded on Wednesday morning, Hamlin was still unconscious, in critical condition. As of Thursday, reports are out that he is awake, and responding to questions.
Steelers Shazier Said This Hit Close To Home
Shazier has a unique perspective, as he also suffered a traumatic injury at Paycor Stadium during a Monday Night Football game and was taken to the same hospital. In fact, just two weeks ago they filmed an episode covering Shazier’s injury and his experience recovering.
Shazier said he had to postpone the filming of the podcast by a day because emotionally he couldn’t speak on it.
“To see that happen, it was like reliving that pain all over again,” Shazier said.
“It was almost surreal, it kinda threw me back. I couldn’t talk about how I was really feeling because I just didn’t know how to feel. My emotions were all over the place. I understand Damar’s (Hamlin) situation is totally different than mine. To be in a situation on a Monday night game, playing and just thinking everything is going to be ok, and then now Damar is fighting for his life is a situation where you don’t know how to react.”
Hamlin is a Pittsburgh native, he grew up in McKees Rock and played at the University of Pittsburgh so he has a special connection with the Steelers.
“It was really hard for me to watch that, Damar is a great guy, he is a great human. I met him a few times when he was at Pitt. It was really tough for me to watch,” Shazier noted.
Dameshek asked Shazier what advice he would give Hamlin’s family. He said the most important thing is to stay positive.
“Just constantly pour positivity into him. The most positive you are, the more you believe, the more likely good things happen. That is one of the reasons I was able to overcome what I overcame. ”
Shazier said he has zero regrets. He knew that football was a calculated risk but it has been his life for as long as he can remember. He said, if he could get a magic wand and play football again he would. It isn’t changed by some of the injuries he has seen. He hopes that while injuries like this are terrible, they will help remind fans that these men are human beings and should be treated as such. He went on to talk about what some people have said to him.
“Ryan you’re my favorite linebacker, I use you on Madden every single day,” Shazier said. “It is not my choice that I’m not there anymore and that makes it really hard for me. People see me as a Madden character. Instead of saying ‘Hey Ryan, how are you? How is your family?’ They said, ‘Hey can I get a picture, can I get time with you?’ and people fail to realize but they see it more when they see injuries like Damar’s.”
He hopes that fans will continue to pray for Hamiln but also for the other players on the Bills and in the NFL.
“It’s ok to enjoy the game but when critical moments of the game happen, we have to understand that we are vulnerable people just like yourself. If you see your best friend have the same situation that happened to Damar in a coffee restaurant you would lose it, you would lose it. And that is the same thing we want people to expect from us. Vince Williams is one of my closest friends, he seen one of his best friends get paralyzed, in his face, and everyone expected him go back out there and go play football,” Shazier said.
Shazier wants fans to remember that some things are bigger than a score or a championship and that “sometimes the game does not matter.” Drop a positive note for Hamiln or any players on the Steelers or in the NFL below. As fans, let’s let them know that we are grateful for the sacrifices that make for our entertainment.
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