There was nowhere to point the finger after Damar Hamlin went down Monday night. It was a freak accident that yielded a horrifying outcome.
Bart Scott apparently didn’t see it that way, however.
While the NFL linebacker-turned-analyst didn’t flat-out blame Tee Higgins for harming Hamlin at Paycor Stadium, Scott did take aim at the Bengals wide receiver, who the Bills safety hit before suffering cardiac arrest.
“Right before the tackle, he (Higgins) lowers his helmet and he kind of throws his body into his (Hamlin’s) chest,” Scott said Tuesday on ESPN’s “First Take.” “He’s (Hamlin) standing up because he’s thinking he’s got to take Tee Higgins at an angle to make a tackle. So, he didn’t expect Tee Higgins to launch his body back into him. A lot of times you see it as a linebacker. Running back comes through the hole and he knows that contact’s coming, so he lowers his helmet and you can’t get underneath him. He’s able to get into you and your chest is exposed. So they’ve taken that out of the game, but they don’t really regulate it as much as possible. I expect the league will be a lot more vigilant when it comes to that and using that penalty.”
Scott wasn’t the only well-known NFL pundit who drew the ire of football fans in the aftermath of Hamlin’s injury. Skip Bayless ruffled feathers when he brought up the uncertainty surrounding the NFL’s remaining regular-season schedule shortly after on-field medics treated Hamlin, who needed to have his heartbeat restored before going to the hospital.
The 24-year-old spent Monday night in the intensive care unit at University of Cincinnati Medical Center and remains in critical condition as of Tuesday afternoon, per an announcement from the Bills.
