Pittsford, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - Damar Hamlin earned his spot as the Buffalo Bills' starting safety last season, playing alongside Taylor Rapp in the secondary. The season was Hamlin’s first full campaign playing since almost losing his life during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals near the end of the 2022 season.
Hamlin got a lot of valuable experience last season, and says much of the pressure is off of him now.
"I’m just trying to grow my game as a whole," said Hamlin on Monday following practice at Bills training camp. "Last year I was trying to prove a lot, dealing with the sudden cardiac arrest on the field, and having the world see me as that moment. I felt like I was chasing plays a lot, and felt like I had to make plays so that people can see me as the athlete and what I can truly do on the field, which had me antsy in my game a lot. So coming back around this year, I truly feel like I accomplished that, and that I have peace. I don’t feel any outside world expectations. I’m not worried about trying to get other people’s labels off of me. I’m just locked into allowing the game to come to me, and focusing on my technique and fundamentals.
"The biggest difference from last year to this year is last year, I was chasing because I wanted to prove myself to my team that I could be one of the starters on this Buffalo Bills defense, and I can be the guy that can lead us where we need to go."
Bobby Babich has been Hamlin’s coach throughout his time in the NFL, first as the Bills' defensive backs coach and now as defensive coordinator. The safety says knowing Babich has helped him be a better player.
"I think that’s everything. It’s how you get freedom as a player when you know your expectations, and your only job is to meet them," Hamlin said at St. John Fisher University. "We talked about that in the spring, because if you don’t know what’s expected of you, how can you perform at a highest level? So expectations are always clear here, and Bobby Babich holds that standard day-in and day-out with everything from top-to-bottom. It’s just about preparing the mindset to meet that expectation."
Hamlin says he was sad last season with Tre'Davious White bouncing around from team-to-team, but is very happy he's back with the Bills.
The team has Tuesday off, and will be back at St. John Fisher for a 9:45 a.m. practice on Wednesday.