Bills Reveal Details on Damar Hamlin Injury After IR Announcement. AND
The Buffalo Bills are preparing for their Week 6 clash with the Atlanta Falcons, and after suffering their first loss of the 2025 season in Week 5 at the hands of the New England Patriots, they will be eager to get back in the win column. Unfortunately, the team was dealt a couple of tough injuries ahead of their upcoming game.
While it appears as if star defensive tackle Ed Oliver is on track to play against the Falcons, the Bills lost safety Damar Hamlin to injured reserve on Saturday. After the team announced the move, head coach Sean McDermott provided some more clarity on Hamlin’s status moving forward after his tough injury blow.
Sean McDermott Provides Injury Update on Damar Hamlin
The 2025 season has been an interesting one for Hamlin. After emerging as a starter at safety for the team last year, he has played in each of the team’s first five games, but he’s been used as a reserve player instead of a starter, racking up just one tackle during his limited time on the field. Instead, Taylor Rapp and Cole Bishop have been the starters at safety so far this season.
Hamlin is a solid special teams player who has experience in Buffalo’s defensive system, so that makes him a guy worth holding onto as a backup. Now that he’s out, that could lead to the veteran Jordan Poyer getting elevated to the active roster from the practice squad, or the team could simply lean on Sam Franklin Jr. and Jordan Hancock for the time being.
The decision to place Hamlin on injured reserve was a bit curious, as he only recently popped up on the injury report. When speaking on the decision, McDermott revealed that Hamlin suffered a pectoral injury during practice last week, and with a multi-game absence expected, the team opted to place him on injured reserve to open up a roster spot.
“T.J. Sanders and Damar are both out, will eventually both head to IR,” McDermott said on Saturday. “(Hamlin) had a pec situation come up in practice.”
Bills Hoping to Get Back in the Win Column After Week 5 Loss
Considering how he lost his starting job this season, being without Hamlin isn’t necessarily the end of the world, but it will force Buffalo to make some changes to the backend of its roster. Poyer certainly is a guy worth calling up from the practice squad, as he has ample experience in the Bills’ defensive system, which makes him a perfect backup option.
Even with Hamlin on injured reserve, Buffalo will still be heavily favored to take down Atlanta, which is fresh off its bye week in Week 5. The Bills have looked the part of a Super Bowl contender through five games, and a key trait that many champions possess is an ability to bounce back after a tough loss. That is precisely what this team will be looking to do when they take the field at 7:15 p.m. ET on Monday Night Football.
Exploring Why the Raiders Made an Eyebrow-Raising Cut
The Las Vegas Raiders have undoubtedly improved over the past few months, but that improvement led to several challenging decisions on cutdown day.
When the Raiders drafted Tommy Mellott in the sixth round of this year's NFL Draft, they did so with th expectation that he could potentially help the team on offense, or special teams. Mellott entered with a unique skill set, but also an uphill battle as a sixth round pick switching positions.
Not to mention, Mellott was tasked with making a significant jump in competition from Montana State to the National Football League. Making the 53-man roster would have been difficult for most players in his shoes.
Big Surprise
Mellott not making the roster was not all that surprising, but him not making the practice squad was somewhat of a surprise.
Following cutdown day, Raiders General Manager John Spytek explained why the Raiders moved on from Mellott.
"Well, I have a lot of respect for Tommy [Mellott], and there were a lot of hard decisions that we made the last couple days. And ultimately, our responsibility, Coach [Pete Carroll] and myself, is to put the best 53 and then 17 after that, and to get ready to win football games," Spytek said.
"And there's always a development part of that too, but there's a reality sometimes that who was most ready and who was furthest along and who could help this team win the most, and ultimately, we made some decisions that didn't include him for now."
Spytek explained how the conversation between he and Mellot went on cutdown day.
"When I talked to him yesterday – he's a great kid, he worked really, really hard to try to become an NFL wide receiver after being an FCS quarterback. I don't think people understand quite how hard that is," Spytek said.
"And unfortunately, this is not a field where there's a lot of patience all the time. And I still believe in Tommy. I think he's got a really bright future, and I really hope that he finds a place where he can find maybe a little more patience from a roster standpoint.
Jun 11, 2025; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Tommy Mellott (19) looks on during Las Vegas Raiders Minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images / Candice Ward-Imagn Images
Spytek noted that moving on from Mellott also had a lot to do with how confident the Raiders are in the players they kept at positions Mellott could have realistically made an impact at.
"The other thing I would say, too, and this is to compliment Alex Guerrero, Chris Cortez, and our entire athletic training staff, we were very, very healthy. And a lot of times, those decisions get made for you. There's a lot of times where I've been in a wide receiver room where you have 15 guys, and next thing you know you're down to 10, and it's not that hard to make a decision," Spytek said.
"We had to make a decision between all the wide receivers that we brought to camp; they were all healthy at the end. So, unfortunately, it didn't work out here for Tommy right now. But I'm never saying never to him, and I wish him the best wherever he ends up."
