The NFL jokes about scripted narratives may seem self-evident, but they undeniably cater to specific storylines.
It’s clear that Bomani Jones was displeased with the way Sunday night’s game between the Bills and Bengals was handled.
The game placed significant emphasis on Damar Hamlin’s return to Cincinnati, particularly following his cardiac arrest incident last season when he attempted to tackle Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins.
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Jones believes that the NFL was misguided in its attempt to turn Hamlin’s return into an inspirational story.
“The belief in this game and the way that people look at it is so powerful that they’ve got to believe they can make it into something good,” Jones said, via Awful Announcing. “I’ll be honest, it’s been almost a year since all of this happened and I haven’t really reconciled where I am on it and how I feel about it. And you just keep showing me this … we’d all be better off acting like it didn’t happen.”
Jones didn’t limit his critique to just that.
“I do recognize that the role of sport in society is value promotion and all of these things. But now that everything has to be made into a television show, the NFL has to stand in every way for all that’s good. And what they’re trying to do is turn what happened with Damar Hamlin into a story of inspiration. There is nothing inspiring about what happened.”
It has been approximately ten months since Hamlin’s collapse on the field. Fortunately, he is in improved health and is present on the sidelines for every game.
Notably, Hamlin was inactive for the recent game against the Bengals.
The circumstances surrounding Hamlin’s absence raise questions: If he’s fit to play, why wasn’t he on the field? If he’s not deemed good enough for active play, why does he remain on the roster?
