The Buffalo Bills have confirmed that Damar Hamlin is showing signs of 'improvement' after suffering a cardiac arrest on Monday night.
The 24-year-old collapsed during the first quarter of Monday Night Football after making a tackle on Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins. His heart went into cardiac arrest and ambulance crews performed CPR and used a defibrillator to restart his heart before taking him to the hospital.
He has since remained in critical condition, but the Bills have posted the most positive update yet on Thursday, with team-mates also commenting on his condition. The Bills posted on their official Twitter account: "Per the physicians caring for Damar Hamlin at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Damar has shown remarkable improvement over the past 24 hours.
"While still critically ill, he has demonstrated that he appears to be neurologically intact. His lungs continue to heal and he is making steady progress.
"We are grateful for the love and support we have received," their statement concluded. Before the Bills released their statement, team-mate Kaiir Elam offered his own update on Twitter.
"Our boy is doing better, awake and showing more signs of improvement," Elam wrote. "Thank you God. Keep the prayers coming please. All love 3!"
The Buffalo Bills have cancelled their media availability this week as they prepare - as best they can - for their final scheduled regular season game against the New England Patriots on Sunday night.
Their postponed game against the Bengals will not be played this week, the NFL confirmed, and there will be no changes to this weekend's schedule as a result of the medical incident. Former Los Angeles Chargers and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Ryan Leaf has called for the league to postpone all games this Sunday, as he claimed on Twitter that it would be the only way to prove the league cares about player safety.
"If the (NFL) truly cared about the health, safety, and wellness of their players, there would be no reason not to postpone this weekend’s games," he tweeted. "Let’s see if you’re a part of the #NFLBrotherhood or just another cog in the corporate $$ printing machine!"
There have been no plans to suspend games, and the Bills will do their best to focus on Sunday's clash. There is no further update about concluding their match against the Bengals, but it's not of importance at this time.
