Dan Orlovsky Praised After 'Beautiful' Prayer for Damar Hamlin Live on Air
Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky has been receiving widespread praise after saying he was "sad" and "angry" during a prayer he shared in a live broadcast for Buffalo Bills player, Damar Hamlin.
The sports world was shaken on Monday when 24-year-old Hamlin collapsed on the field of play. It was later discovered Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest. CPR was administered and his heartbeat was restored on the field before he was taken to a Cincinnati hospital, though he is still reported to be in a critical condition.
Paying tribute to the young athlete, former Detroit Lions QB Orlovsky took a moment during an ESPN broadcast to pray. His seemingly impromptu words were widely praised online, with millions of people viewing it live on air and across social media.
On Tuesday, he said that while it perhaps wasn't the right time or place, he was about to pray for Hamlin.
"God we come to you in these moments that we don't understand, that are hard, because we believe that you are God and coming to and praying to you has impact. We're sad, we're angry. And we want answers but some things are unanswerable."
Orlovsky continued: "We just want to pray. Truly come to you, and pray for strength for Damar for healing, for Damar for comfort, for Damar. Be with his family to give them peace. If we [...] believe[d] that prayer didn't work, we wouldn't ask this of you God. I believe in prayer, we believe in prayer. We lift up Damar Hamlin name and your name. Amen."
After he shared this spiritual moment, viewers recorded the clip and weighed in online.
The brand Sports Spectrum, a sports media outlet targeted at Christians, praised Orlovsky. "Beautiful words of empathy, hope and love. #PrayForDamarHamlin," Sports Spectrum wrote.
"This is one of the coolest things I've seen on TV," Twitter user @JGStewart9 wrote in his own tweet that went viral. "His ESPN corespondent made 'thoughts and prayers' more than just a cliche statement," he said.
In response to the feedback, Orlovsky retweeted and replied in multiple places "Matthew 18:20" and added, "Let's live out our faith right now for Damar."
The passage Orlovsky quoted from the Bible reads: "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."
ESPN presenter Ashley Brewer also directed praise at Orlovsky after his prayer was widely shared. "This is amazing, I teared up watching this in my living room today," she said. "Proud to call you my teammate & brother in Christ."
Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark has made headlines in his own right for calling out NFL fans after Hamlin's collapse on the field and subsequent hospitalization.
He said, speaking live on TV after Hamlin was taken to hospital: "The next time I think that we get upset about our favorite fantasy player or the guy on our team who doesn't make the play or we're saying he's worthless and we're saying you get to make all this money, we should remember they're putting their lives on the line to live their dream and tonight Damar Hamlin's dream became a nightmare, for not only himself, but for his family and entire team."
He too praised Orlovsky for sharing a prayer on Twitter: "So proud of my ESPN family today!! You guys were amazing. One day [Damar Hamlin] will hear and see how you all spoke about him as his family does now, & he will love it." Orlovsky told Clark he was following his lead as he often does.
Former Eagles cornerback Darius Slay tweeted that while "some of these TV people be so damn fake man," he appreciated people like Orlovsky and his colleagues for keeping it real.
Uncommon Knowledge
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