One week removed from the hit that could have ended Damar Hamlin's life comes word that he has been transferred from the University of Cincinnati Medical Center to a hospital in Buffalo to continue his remarkable recovery.
Hamlin has made big strides in a slow recovery process, but in the initial hours following the incident on Monday Night Football, the trauma was all too real for Paducah's George Wilson.
Wilson, a star at Paducah Tilghman and a former captain of the Buffalo Bills, told Bristol Broadcasting's First Friday Show with J.W. Cleary that watching those events was jarring.
Wilson said, "That was traumatic for me, and I know it was even more traumatic for the players, the coaches, and all the team personnel that had to witness that, right there, before their very feet. I went through a whirlwind of emotions. It went from not really understanding why I feel the way that I feel, you know, that's something that was common, I think, across all people-former players-you know, it was a traumatic experience seeing one our brothers... All of us have been in that position where we've hit someone or someone has hit us and it was a stinger or it, you know, jolted our neck or head back, and so we all could empathize with brother Hamlin, because it could have been us."
Wilson said the Bills reached out to all their former players and conducted a Zoom call last Wednesday, and even had a therapist on the call from the NFL Trust to help them process the situation.
Wilson said, "They gave us the floor to be able to vent and express ourselves. I was feeling lost, as far as placing my feelings and my emotions, you know, but when I got on that call I saw that what I was experiencing was not exclusive to me. And so, it gave me comfort and peace in knowing that my brothers that I shared the locker room with, that I shared the field with, were experiencing some of the same trauma. It impacted us all a little different, but it all impacted us nonetheless. To be able to have that couple of hours of venting and talking to the therapist, you know, I think it certainly helped to make us feel better."
Wilson believes the national outpouring of support for Hamlin's charity comes from recognizing Hamlin's giving heart. He said that should be the greater takeaway.
"Nobody is looking at what political affiliation anybody comes from, nobody is looking at what church, or religion, or God you serve, nobody is looking to see who you're married to or who you spend your life with, nobody is looking to see what side of the tracks or what your zip code is. These are genuine people that just care about another human and another family that is experiencing trauma, because everybody will have to cross that bridge at some point in time."
Wilson wants to see more of this type of "humanity" not just during the holidays or in times of trouble, but every day.
Photo: George Wilson (second from left) shown with the other members of the 2022 class inducted into the Kentucky Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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