NFL

Hamlin meets with Bills team-mates ahead of Bengals rematch

By Sports Desk January 22, 2023

Damar Hamlin met with his Buffalo Bills team-mates ahead of their AFC Divisional playoff clash with the Cincinnati Bengals, three weeks on from his cardiac arrest.

The safety collapsed during the first quarter of the pair's Week 17 clash on January 2, and was hospitalised in serious condition after receiving treatment on the field.

But the 2021 draft pick has continued to show a remarkable improvement since, with coach Sean McDermott revealing earlier this week that he had been attending the team's training facility.

Now, Hamlin has gone one step further after missing last week's opening playoff win against the Miami Dolphins in making the trip to Highmark Stadium for the Bills' crunch clash.

Video footage posted on social media showed him in attendance alongside members of his family, ahead of kick-off in the Sunday encounter.

In Hamlin's absence, Buffalo won a taut opening playoff encounter with Miami last week, running out 34-31 victors at Orchard Park.

Josh Allen threw for three touchdowns in all, with the hosts holding their nerve to keep their visitors at bay in the final quarter.

The winner of the Bills-Bengals match will meet the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game next weekend.

Related items

  • Panthers sign veteran pass-rusher Clowney Panthers sign veteran pass-rusher Clowney

    After tallying the fewest sacks in the NFL in 2023, the Carolina Panthers have upgraded their pass rush.

    The Panthers signed Jadeveon Clowney to a two-year, $20million deal with a max value of $24million on Wednesday.

    The top overall pick of the 2014 NFL draft, Clowney has bounced around from team to team the past few seasons as it looked like his best years were behind him.

    The 31-year-old, however, is coming off a resurgent 2023.

    Playing in all 17 games last season for the Baltimore Ravens, Clowney racked up 9 1/2 sacks - matching his career high from 2017.

    He also registered 19 quarterback hits and 79 QB pressures - tied for seventh most in the NFL.

    He joins a Carolina team that had a league-low 27 sacks last season and had the NFL's worst record at 2-15.

    Clowney, who grew up about 20 minutes from the Panthers' home stadium, spent his first five pro seasons with the Houston Texans before spending the last five seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns and Ravens.

    From 2019-2022 in his first four seasons since leaving Houston, he totaled just 14 sacks.

    In 126 career games, he has 52 1/2 sacks, 128 QB hits and 15 forced fumbles.

     

  • Titans to acquire cornerback Sneed from Chiefs Titans to acquire cornerback Sneed from Chiefs

    The Tennessee Titans are finalising a deal to acquire cornerback L’Jarius Sneed from the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for a pair of draft picks, according to multiple sources.

    The Chiefs are expected to receive a third-round pick in next year's draft and swap picks with the Titans in next month's draft. The two sides are working on a new contract to make Sneed one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in NHL history.

    After the Chiefs placed the nonexclusive franchise tag on Sneed earlier this month, he was allowed to talk to other teams, who could then work out a deal with Kansas City.

    The 27-year-old Sneed has developed into one of the best cornerbacks in the league since he was drafted in the fourth round in 2020. He was a key part of a defence that helped Kansas City win back-to-back Super Bowl titles.

    Sneed allowed a passer rating of just 55.9 on throws when he was in coverage in the regular season, ranking fifth best among cornerbacks.

    Often tasked with following the opponents’ top receiver all over the field, Sneed didn’t allow a single touchdown pass until the playoffs against Buffalo and only Davante Adams of the Raiders had more than two catches in a game when Sneed was in coverage.

    He had two interceptions and 14 passes defended in 16 games last season, giving him 10 picks and 40 passes defended in his four-year career.

  • Jets signing wide receiver Williams to one-year contract Jets signing wide receiver Williams to one-year contract

    Mike Williams is going from the west coast of the United States to the country's east coast.

    Williams is signing a one-year contract with the New York Jets worth up to $15million.

    The deal was reported Tuesday by Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

    The Los Angeles Chargers released Williams last Wednesday to free up $20million in salary cap space.

    Going into the final year of a 2022 contract extension that included $40million in guaranteed money, Williams missed most of last season after suffering a torn ACL in his left knee in Week 3.

    He'll now be teaming up with a quarterback who missed essentially all of 2023 after Aaron Rodgers ruptured his left Achilles tendon on the Jets' fourth offensive snap of the season.

    Rodgers' injury derailed what was hoping to be a promising season for the Jets, as they ended up rotating through three more starting quarterbacks and finished 7-10 to miss the play-offs.

    New York has the NFL's longest active streak of missing the play-offs at 13 seasons.

    Williams had spent his first seven NFL seasons with the Chargers after being selected seventh overall in the 2017 draft.

    His best season came in 2021, when he had career highs of 76 receptions for 1,146 yards, along with nine touchdowns.

    In 88 career games, Williams has 309 catches for 4,806 yards with 31 TDs.

     

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.