Jaguars HC Doug Pederson offers support and safe space to his players following Damar Hamlin’s injury

The football world stopped when Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest in the middle of a bout against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football. Hamlin’s health is still delicate but he’s improving. Meanwhile, players, coaches, and the media are trying to recover from the unfortunate incident. Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson made an appearance on NFL Media’s Good Morning Football and talked about how navigated the situation.

Pederson told GMFB host Kyle Brandt that he thought at the moment it was a routine hit but he quickly realized he was witnessing an unprecedented moment. The Jaguars’ head coach goes on to discuss what he did in the aftermath and what he told his players following Hamlin’s injury, was I going to prepare our football team? What was I going to say?

Here’s a fragment of Pederson’s conversation with Brandt, via Nick Shook of NFL Media:

"We’re in the middle of playing in the AFC South… It’s human nature. It’s the humanity. You have to just be real and humble. You have to address it. You have to talk about it. Players are going to have questions. Listen, I can honestly say I don’t have all the answers, but at the same time, I want my players to know that we’re here for them. It’s the reason I love this sport so much."

Most teams canceled media availabilities Tuesday, so not many players or coaches had the chance to share their thoughts on the matter until Wednesday. Besides Pederson, right guard Brandon Scherff and Trevor Lawrence have also spoken publicly about Hamlin’s injury. Both of them offered prayers and wish him a speedy recovery. Here’s Pederson’s whole exchange on GMFB:

Doug Pederson keeps Jaguars united after Damar Hamlin’s injury

There’s no playbook for how to react in this kind of situation but Zach Taylor and Sean McDermott, who witnessed firsthand Hamllin’s injury, deserve plenty of praise for how they handled things.

Similarly, Pederson showed his leadership skills in how he navigated the situation. He knew players were shocked and needed time to regroup. He’s aware he needed to keep a balance between coping and moving forward. After all, the Jaguars have a game to play, an important one at that, against the Tennesse Titans in Week 18, and he’s aware he needs to wait for players to be fully on but also knows they need to get ready.

This is a delicate (and fluid) situation and Pederson has done what he can to thread the needle to the best of his capacities. Based on his comments, the Jaguars should be ready to face off against their division foes on Saturday night.