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Nyheim Hines ignited an emotionally charged atmosphere celebrating injured Bills safety Damar Hamlin by returning two kickoffs for touchdowns, and Buffalo clinched the AFC’s second playoff seed with a 35-23 win over the New England Patriots on Sunday.
The loss, coupled with Miami beating the New York Jets, eliminated the Patriots (8-9) from the playoffs for the second time in three years, and just the fourth time in 23 seasons during Bill Belichick’s coaching tenure. Buffalo will now host their division rival Dolphins in the wild-card round next weekend.
With the game in hand, Bills players held up three fingers in honor of Hamlin’s number with the crowd chanting “Hamlin! Hamlin!”
The Bills (13-3) closed their season by winning their final seven games and overcame an emotional week in which the team was left devastated in watching Hamlin collapse after going into cardiac arrest and having to be resuscitated on the field in Cincinnati on Monday night.
What followed was progressive good news of Hamlin’s remarkable recovery in which he was not only able to breathe on his own, but also managed to address his teammates while saying “Love you boys” on Friday.
And leave it to receiver Stefon Diggs, who made a point to visit Hamlin in the University of Cincinnati Medical Center immediately following the game, to seal the victory with a 49-yard touchdown catch from Josh Allen to put Buffalo ahead 35-23 with 8:51 remaining.
