Bills Seeking Consultation About Damar Hamlin's NFL Future, Says Medical Director

The Buffalo Bills are consulting multiple experts before making a decision on safety Damar Hamlin's potential playing future in the NFL.

Per Mark Maske of the Washington Post, NFL medical director Allen Sills said the Bills have and will continue to speak with medical experts about Hamlin's future prospects as a player, and the decision on whether to play will be up to Hamlin when the time is right:

"It's his decision, and he is the person that will need to drive that decision, and then we'll all line up and support that. So I think that's something to happen down the road. I think right now the focus is on his recovery and his continued improvement. And then there will be another day and time to discuss all that. But it will be strictly led by him and those that are close to him. And the Buffalo medical staff, I know, has, as I said, already engaged and will engage a lot of experts to help provide input and opinions into that process."

The 24-year-old Hamlin went into cardiac arrest after making a tackle during a Week 17 road game against the Buffalo Bills, prompting the Bills and Bengals medical staffs to revive him with life-saving CPR.

Hamlin was transported to a Cincinnati hospital, eventually regaining the ability to breathe without a tube and speak.

Hamlin's improvement was so great that he was able to attend the Bills' 27-10 AFC Divisional Round playoff loss to the Bengals just three weeks after going into cardiac arrest.

He also appeared at Thursday's NFL Honors awards show and gave an emotional speech in which he thanked those responsible for saving his life.

Not much is known publicly about Hamlin's medical history and what led to the cardiac arrest. NFL Players Association Medical Director Thom Mayer has no doubts about Hamlin's ability to play again, though, as he guaranteed last week on SiriusXM's Heart to Heart (h/t ProFootballTalk's Mike Florio) that Hamlin's playing career isn't over.

Prior to the scary on-field moment in Cincinnati, Hamlin was in the midst of his second NFL season as a sixth-round draft pick out of Pittsburgh.

With veteran safety Micah Hyde missing most of the season due to injury, Hamlin started 13 of the 15 games he appeared in, recording 91 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Hamlin was establishing himself as an important part of Buffalo's defense and a potential long-term piece, so it seems likely the Bills would at least be open to him returning at some point if he can get a clean bill of health.