Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered one of the worst injuries in modern sports history Monday after making a tackle against the Cincinnati Bengals, rocking the sports community in and beyond the troubled Paycor Stadium turnout. Hamlin, 24, remains in the hospital, but is in stable condition and improving quickly, his breathing tube being removed as of Friday.

Bills-Bengals was set to be a spectacle, with two of the winningest teams in the NFL facing off on Monday Night Football, but the game was quick to turn dangerous. Just over halfway through the first quarter, Bengals receiver Tee Higgins slanted leftward with the ball to be met by Hamlin. Higgins angled his body, attempting to charge through the defense, and it was Hamlin who was left to withstand the blow.

Hamlin got up from the play and appeared to have made a routine football play, but what followed was clear to be anything but.

Front and center at the 50 yard line, after collecting himself following the big hit, Damar Hamlin fell to the turf unconscious, immediately to be put in a stretcher and sent to a Cincinnati hospital, his condition being recognized quickly by Cincinnati medical personnel.

The game was delayed initially as many were still unaware of the severity of the situation. 40 minutes after the hit, it was reported that Hamlin had suffered cardiac arrest and was in critical condition, a headline that sucked the competition out of the stadium and replaced it with unity.

Players from both the Bills and Bengals were visibly distressed and consoled each other at midfield as they realized the game no longer mattered – it was now solely the status of Damar Hamlin.

Hamlin is improving steadily, but remains in critical condition, as the NFL and Cincinnati medical professionals are working diligently to solve. His toy foundation, which initially had a goal of $2,500, now sits at just over three million dollars worth of donations.

Damar Hamlin’s first message upon waking up was, “did we win?” to which the doctors responded, “You won. You won the game of life.”

Hamlin is expected to make a full recovery and is now speaking with family, friends, and teammates.