Hamlin in their hearts the NFL pays tribute to No. 3

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Hamlin in their hearts the NFL pays tribute to No. 3

ORCHARD Marcus Davenport Jersey PARK, N.Y. (AP) Damar Hamlin's old high school teammate clutched the ball he had just intercepted, jogged to the 30-yard line, at the top of the red-outlined 3," raised his hands over his head and formed them in the shape of a heart. The gesture by Indianapolis Colts safety Rodney Thomas II might have been the most poignant moment, but it was far from the only shout-out to the Bills safety on an NFL Sunday filled with love for a stricken player whose impact is being felt acro s the nation. Hamlin's number number 3 was on display everywhere acro s the league, outlined on 30-yard lines on fields, worn on special patches on the Bills uniforms and featured on jackets and sweatshirts and even outside the Bills home stadium. The highest volume of tribute poured in, naturally, from that parking lot in Orchard Park, New York, where Buffalo's 35-23 victory over New England was punctuated by a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Nyheim Hines on the game's opening play. OMFG!!!!!!!!!!!!!, Hamlin tweeted after the quick score. The safety, whose Monday night in Cincinnati has overtaken every NFL story line, of himself Ka'Dar Hollman Jersey making a heart with his hands from his hospital bed shortly before kickoff with the text GAMETIME!!! @BuffaloBills.Before that, in the lot outside of Highmark Stadium, Ryan Magnuson stood in front of a 4-x-10-foot canvas greeting card that he placed at the foot of the Bills stadium entrance for fans to sign. The me sage on the card: If you get a chance to show some love today, do it. It won't cost you nothing a reprise of a more than two years ago.Its been very positive. Ive seen Bills fans, Ive seen Patriots fans and people wearing other NFL jerseys coming up. I think this is bigger than a team thing at this point, Magnuson said. Fifteen-hundred miles away, and three hours later in Denver, the Chargers and Broncos each walked to the numbers near their respective sidelines while the No. 3s on both teams Ru sell Wilson and Derwin James Jr. met at the 50-yard-line, shook hands and kneeled in prayer. Philly running back Miles Sanders tweeted a picture of himself, wearing a Love For Damar sweatshirt, and flashing the number 3 while FaceTiming with Hamlin from Lamar Miller Jersey his hospital.Not all was warm and fuzzy. In Cincinnati, Bengals running back Joe Mixon celebrated a touchdown by the likes of which would have happened, per a late NFL contingency plan to decide home-field advantage in a potential playoff game between the Bengals and Ravens. Cincinnati's 27-16 win over the Ravens on Sunday staved off that po sibility. The Ravens will visit Cincy next week in the wild-card round. But saying all Tony Jones Jr. Jersey is back to normal in the NFL this week, or for the upcoming playoffs, still feels like a bit of a stretch. The postseason is bound to be outfitted in Love For Damar sweatshirts and others embroidered with Hamlin Strong, the likes of which Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wore during Saturday's win over the Raiders. Some may even wear shirts being himself, with proceeds going to first responders and the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, where he's been since Monday.It is bound to be filled with reminders that the high stakes of these games are about more than a trophy to be awarded at the end of the Super Bowl.It is bound to feel a little bit off. If the Chiefs and Bills advance to the AFC title game, for instance, that game will be played on a neutral field, in a city still to be determined. The heart of this league was beating most strongly in Buffalo on Sunday.In the vast parking lots circling the stadium, fans wore self-made shirts and jerseys honoring Hamlin.Sue Sonner wore Terron Armstead Jersey a former Bills quarterback EJ Manuels No. 3 jersey; her husband creatively covered over Manuel's name with Hamlin's. Its going to be very emotional. Im taking some ti sues with me for sure, said Sonner, who is from Corning, New York, and was in the stadium in Cincinnati last Monday.We could see the scurry and the trauma and the panic and all of that. So very somber, very somber environment, she said. Now that hes progre sing and we think hes going to be okay, now were excited to play football again. And hopefully hes on the road to recovery.___AP Sports Writers Mitch Stacy in Cincinnati, Eddie Pells in Denver and AP freelance writers Lori Chase and Jonah Bronstein in Orchard Park contributed.___AP NFL: hub/nfl and AP_NFL in this topic
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