‘I don’t know how you can avoid it’: President Joe Biden faces questions about the dangers of football after Damar Hamlin’s on-field cardiac arrest, but says ‘It’s dangerous, you just have to acknowledge it’
President Joe Biden has weighed the dangers of football after Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest during Monday’s game against the Bengals in Cincinnati.
When asked if he thinks the NFL is “getting too dangerous,” Biden stressed that the dangers of the sport are inevitable.
“Don’t look,” Biden began. “I don’t know how to avoid it [dangerous hits]. I think it makes a lot of sense to work on the helmets and the concussion logs. But… it’s dangerous, you just have to acknowledge it.’
President Joe Biden has weighed the dangers of football after Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest during Monday’s game against the Bengals in Cincinnati
The ambulance leaves the field with Buffalo Bills Damar Hamlin (3) after being injured while being tackled during the first half of the game at Paycor Stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals
Hamlin went into cardiac arrest after making a tackle on Bengals’ Tee Higgins in the first quarter of Monday’s game. He was revived in the field and had to be resuscitated. He is now in critical condition in the intensive care unit at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
“We all remain optimistic,” Jordon Rooney, a family spokesman who described himself as a good friend of the player, told The Associated Press over the phone. He said he was unable to elaborate on Hamlin’s status because his family asked not to provide details.
Rooney’s update came after Hamlin’s uncle Dorrian Glenn told numerous media outlets on Tuesday night that there were some encouraging signs of his nephew’s progress, such as doctors reducing Hamlin’s oxygen requirements from 100 per cent to 50 per cent.
“He’s still sedated at the moment,” Glenn told CNN. “They just want him to have a better chance to recover better. So you feel like his body can heal much quicker if he’s sedated than if he were awake, potentially causing other complications.
“It seems like it’s trending positively up,” Glenn added.
Hamlin went into cardiac arrest after making a tackle on Bengals’ Tee Higgins in the first quarter of Monday’s game. He was revived in the field and had to be resuscitated. He is now in critical condition in the intensive care unit at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center
Without knowing the exact cause of Hamlin’s cardiac arrest, many have suspected football was to blame for Monday night’s scary scene in Cincinnati.
Some fans have wondered if NFL players would change their approach if they didn’t have the protection of padding.
One Twitter user commented: “I wonder what would happen if they removed all the pads and gave them leather helmets?
“The reason they hit the wall with punches is because they wear armor. You [don’t] See how guys start in rugby like this.
After Hamlin’s cardiac arrest, another social media user said, “@NFL It’s time to rethink gear, helmet, body armor and everything else. Don’t wait another day… reach out to these companies and scientists – let us do it. Thank you very much. #damarhamlin.’
While one said: “I realize it’s counterintuitive but football could be safer for impact injuries if there was less body protection, not more.
“It’s the body armor that increased the force of impact contact between players. It can protect against some injuries, but not this one.’
The horrifying incident has drawn attention back to the question of whether armor should be used in the NFL