Who are Damar Hamlin's parents, Mario and Nina Hamlin? All you need to know about Bills player family background

Damar Hamlin is one of the more important players on the Buffalo Bills and part of one of the league's best defenses. Hamlin and his defensive colleagues are a major reason the Bills are topping the AFC Conference and heading to a first-week postseason bye.

Here, we will look at Hamlin's support system and why he made the league in the first place. We will be shining a light on the safety's parents and will give you an update on what happened to the second-year ball player.

Who are Damar Hamlin's parents?

Damar Hamlin was born on March 24, 1998, to an African American couple, Mario and Nina Hamlin. Mario and Nina were high school sweethearts, and they gave birth to Damar when Nina was a mere 16 years old. It was the start of their young family, but things weren't going smoothly at home.

Money was hard to come by, and the only way Mario Hamlin knew how to make money was by participating in street activities to break even. This was a bad idea, culminating in Mario being caught, and he was sentenced to three and a half years in prison when his son Damar was growing up.

That left Nina to take care of little Damar on her own, a tough ask for a teenage mother. However, Nina did what she could: she got a job at an establishment and held it down at home while Mario was away.

When Mario got out of jail, he and Nina began running a daycare company and an office cleaning business. They used these proceeds to raise Damar, and the young stud hardly lacked anything growing up.

With a stable home background, Damar Hamlin rose through the high school and college ranks, eventually getting selected in the 2021 NFL Draft. His selection vindicated everything that his parents went through in raising the young safety.

What happened to Damar Hamlin?

On Jan. 2, Hamlin collapsed on the playing field during a week 17 NFL game between the Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals. Hamlin took a bad hit to the chest by Cincinnati Bengals wideout Tee Higgins, after which he fell to the floor. Hamlin later got up from the ground following the hit but then collapsed onto the ground.

Following the incident, medical staff rushed onto the field to perform CPR. He reportedly required an automated external defibrillator (AED) on the field. According to ESPN, he was placed on a backboard and stretcher and given oxygen as he was put into an ambulance.

As of April 18, 2023, Hamlin has been cleared to return to action after reportedly visiting three specialists.