Ex-NFL Star Blasts Damar Hamlin After Seeing Bizarre Jacket He Wore: 'This Is Blasphemy!'
Legendary former NFL running back Adrian Peterson called out Damar Hamlin for engaging in “blasphemy” with the jacket the Buffalo Bills safety wore to the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Hamlin and the first responders who helped save his life when he collapsed during a “Monday Night Football” game were honored at the game in Glendale, Arizona.
The 24-year-old went into full cardiac arrest during the Bills’ Jan. 2 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
.@HamlinIsland with the first responders that saved his life are honored before #SBLVII. 🫶 pic.twitter.com/JEHnPhihYq
— NFL (@NFL) February 12, 2023
But it was Hamlin’s attire that gained more attention than anything else about his presence at Super Bowl LVII.
The player wore a letterman-type jacket that featured what many viewed as a disrespectful caricature of Jesus Christ.
Excuse me Damar Hamlin, but what exactly is this atrocity? Mocking Jesus? pic.twitter.com/d0wztIZUpm
— DailyNoah.com (@DailyNoahNews) February 13, 2023
The right breast of the jacket read, “Without end or beginning there is no day and there is no night.”
Peterson, who played 15 seasons in the NFL from 2007 to 2021, most of them with the Minnesota Vikings, came across an image of Hamlin’s jacket and unleashed on the young player.
“You should be thanking God son!” he wrote on Instagram. “This is Blasphemy!! We all fall short but cmon man! I find this disrespectful!!”
Count @AdrianPeterson among those who aren’t happy with @HamlinIsland pic.twitter.com/tOKke6YTLe
— Sean Joseph (@sjoseph_sports) February 13, 2023
Hamlin has expressed his faith numerous times since he made his miraculous recovery.
He apparently saw no issue with the jacket, which cost around $3,000, and he has not commented on the controversy surrounding it.
Peterson edited his original Instagram post, saying he had spoken with Hamlin but still was not a fan of the jacket.
“I want to be clear, I’m the last person to judge anyone, and that was never my intention,” the former NFL MVP wrote. “However, I do feel as if the jacket was disrespectful and it was something that I needed to share.”
“Damar, I have respect and love for you and I wish you nothing but the best, but I just can’t rock with that jacket. I feel like there are a lot people, young and old, looking up to you and with power and influence comes great responsibility,” Peterson added.
View this post on Instagram
He concluded, “I apologize for offending you, I just felt offended in that moment as a man who loves and respects our Lord and Savior, Yeshua. After speaking with Damar, I have an understanding that it didn’t come from a place of ill intent!”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
