Beck Water Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 must-read https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/dion-dawkins-letter-buffalo-bills-playoffs-nfl-football 4 25 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beck Water Posted January 12, 2023 Author Share Posted January 12, 2023 Big reveal: Dawkins girlfriend/mother of his children Daiyanna suffered a cardiac arrest out in California during training camp last summer Quote I haven’t talked about this publicly, but during camp last summer, my girlfriend Daiyaana went into cardiac arrest. She was in California for a minor surgery, and they had to put her under. But I guess her body had a bad reaction to the medication they used, which caused her heart to stop. Fortunately the doctors were able to get her back and on a breathing tube, and after some days in a coma she ended up O.K. But it’s the scariest experience I’ve ever been through — just knowing, like, for a moment there she was gone. For a moment, I didn’t know if I’d ever see her again. Or if my kids were seeing their mom again. And it’s been impossible not to relive all of that as everything has been happening with Damar. Not only the aspect of it that was happening in real time, of watching them shock D-Ham’s heart back while praying to God he’d pull through. But also some of these feelings in the bigger picture, about what it means to play this game. Because we can put reassuring vibes into the world…. and we can say reassuring things…. and we can have reassuring initiatives…. and yeah, I can write reassuring articles. But there’s no way to sugarcoat it: that what we do is f*cking scary. And at the end of the day?? I just want to get home, man. Just get home safe to my family….. that’s pretty much it. So I appreciate y’all for understanding, and for letting me be honest here. It’s the honor of my LIFE to rep this city, it really is. We’re about to give these playoffs our WHOLE business. But sh*t weighs heavy right now — and I’m working through that. See you Sunday. I love you. You already shnow. I think it's reasonable to conclude that while they're back to playing football, the events of last Monday are still weighing on the backs of some players' minds 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFunPolice Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 For this team, this group of people, to be the ones to win a Super Bowl would be special in a way that no other team/season could match. 3 8 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warcodered Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 This is a pretty good line too. Quote It’s JUST football!! And we’re better than these other teams at it, so let’s beat four of them and then have a parade. 6 2 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhoTom Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 I got chills reading that. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thenorthremembers Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 (edited) Good stuff. Well done Dion. Edited January 12, 2023 by thenorthremembers 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simstim Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 That man makes me cry. Love the shnowman. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billz4ever Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Love that dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingBoots8 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 “Their football team can **** around and find out if they see us in the playoffs, but salute to their entire city.” Wordsmith. I freaking love Dawkins hahaha 3 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nephilim17 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Very touching and illuminating. I don't always agree with McDermott's football decisions (however, many of them I do agree with) but, as with Dion, Sean has my respect as a human being forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HereComesTheReignAgain Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 (edited) Dion is awesome. Today I read about the tantrum that Beckham threw on the plane where he called an elderly passenger fat, ugly and poor while selfishly refusing to buckle his seatbelt or get off the plane. He implied to the police that he would fight the older man if they didn't keep him away after they got off the plane. Contrast that with a guy like Dawkins, who could easily skip the charity work or corresponding with fans, but chooses to make a difference and treat people with respect and appreciation. In a few days the Bills play against a team whose best player and face of the franchise has a history of beating his pregnant girlfriend and abusing his toddler son. The Bills have Josh Allen. It is nice to cheer for a team that values character and holds their players to a higher standard on and off the field. Edited January 12, 2023 by HereComesTheReignAgain 3 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushypeaches Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Holy crap that was an amazing read. Just shows how real Dawkins is, and really how the whole team and organization approaches things Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 43 minutes ago, TheFunPolice said: For this team, this group of people, to be the ones to win a Super Bowl would be special in a way that no other team/season could match. Saints winning it after Hurricane Katrina was pretty special too 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyBatty is alive Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Fantastic letter, from the heart. Dion never disappoints, what a great teammate he must be. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1stgm1993 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 On 12/12/2022 at 1:45 PM, T&C said: 3 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said: Saints winning it after Hurricane Katrina was pretty special too Pats winning *** after 9/11 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 12 minutes ago, HereComesTheReignAgain said: Dion is awesome. Today I read about the tantrum that Beckham threw on the plane where he called an elderly passenger fat, ugly and poor while selfishly refusing to buckle his seatbelt or get off the plane. He implied to the police that he would fight the older man if they didn't keep him away after they got off the plane. Contrast that with a guy like Dawkins, who could easily skip the charity work or corresponding with fans, but chooses to make a difference and treat people with respect and appreciation. In a few days the Bills play against a team whose best player and face of the franchise has a history of beating his pregnant girlfriend and abusing his toddler son. The Bills have Josh Allen. It is nice to cheer for a team that values character and holds their players to a higher standard on and off the field. That was an outstanding read from an outstanding human. Funny, I was reading up on that OBJ situation myself today and it was enough to 100% change my mind on his possible fit in the locker room here. I never thought he was really going to come here, but based on his past teammates support in LA and CLE, I didn't have a fear he would be a locker room issue at this stage of his career if I was wrong and he ended up here. But regardless if he would behave in the locker room full of peers with a well coached team full of leaders or not...the bottom line is that OBJ does not deserve this locker room after what I saw on video with the plane. Even if you give him the benefit of the doubt that the airline maybe handled it poorly initially (and that is not even clear on if they did or didn't), it's how he handled himself after that point that was unacceptable and just highlights who he is as a person. It is not just how you handle yourself in the locker room, it's how you carry yourself outside it too. Dawkins letter here is a slice of who this team is, how they carry themselves top to bottom. OBJ does not deserve to be part of that family, he isn't built the same as these guys and I really don't see any path that would lead him here, and for that I am now thankful after previously being fine with it (even though I never thought it would happen). 3 1 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain_Quint Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 (edited) Interesting about training camp last year. Didn't he miss time for that and there was some rampet speculation on what was happening or something? I seem to recall something like that, where he missed for 'personal reasons' and we were all up in arms about it. Edited January 12, 2023 by Captain_Quint 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JGMcD2 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 (edited) Quote I also want the Mafia to know something about Sean McDermott. It’s not that he didn’t have my respect before, because he did. But the way he carried himself through this D-Ham ordeal? He has my respect forever. Quote But McDermott stepped up, man, he did. He got in front of the team, and he said we’re not playing, period. He said no matter what the outcome is, we’re not playing. And that might not sound like a lot, but it’s a lot. Because right then, that’s permission to be a person. Not a player — a person. Trust me there’s a difference. Love this from Dion. Especially because of the next section about his GF... I recall a lot of people wanting to rid themselves of Dion because "there's always something mental going on with him and he's not committed" or something stupid as *****. Low and behold his GF was in a coma during Training Camp. Edited January 12, 2023 by JGMcD2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceVilanch Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 This team is going to win the whole damn thing. (knock on wood) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Sack Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 To put it simply, an awesome dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JÂy RÛßeÒ Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Quote There’s been enough talking. But the Mafia knows what’s true. And what’s true is: We’re all in. We’re done waiting, we’re done coming at the king and missing, we’re done knocking on the door of this sh*t, with no answer, for this damn long. We’re keeping it SIMPLE this run. Because — straight up: It’s just football. You know what I’m saying? It’s JUST football!! And we’re better than these other teams at it, so let’s beat four of them and then have a parade. Yeah, let's do THAT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoBills808 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Seems like a lot of teams don't like the Bengals 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sierra Foothills Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Excerpt: "That Bengals game would have been a shootout, I swear. It had a big-fight feel to me, like you had these two heavyweight boxers about to trade crazy punches. Actually the truth is: we don’t like them. That’s how we felt going into that matchup. That’s how we feel about any matchup in our conference, with any team who’s standing in the way of our goal... One image I’ll always have in my head from that night is seeing our two head coaches talking. That stood out to me. I think it goes back to what I was saying about the Bengals earlier — and I wasn’t lying!! That’s enemy territory. But that just tells you again how different this was, because as soon as it became what it became with Damar, no one cared about that other sh*t anymore. Our coach and their coach got together. Our players and their players blended together. And not even just blended together. Bro we were crying together. Like, ugly-tears crying. It’s hard to explain if you haven’t played football….. but to go from where the atmosphere was in that game, just crazy hostile, to where we were seconds later with those dudes?? That does not happen." Great read, thank you for posting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logic Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Amazing stuff. As much as all of us were in shock watching the Damar Hamlin injury, obviously none of us can ever imagine what it was like to be one of his teammates on the field that night. I think it's important to remember that while Damar's outcome was a good one and the team is saying and doing all the right things about "moving forward", there's a very high likelihood that the whole situation is still playing heavily on the minds and hearts of many Bills players. Those who downplayed the word "trauma", well...it WAS trauma for a lot of these guys, and if the words of Tre White and Dion Dawkins don't convince you of that, then nothing well. No matter what happens from here on out, all of these players have my love and respect and support. The same goes for Sean McDermott. He himself said "I just did what anyone would do in my situation", but I don't think that's true. I don't think he gives himself enough credit. I don't think every coach out there puts the PERSON ahead of the PLAYER the way he does. And you can tell it's genuine, and its heartfelt, and its real. He's a principled man of high character and an excellent leader, and I couldn't be prouder to have him as head coach of the Bills. 2 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damj Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 I love Schnowman ... he's real and puts himself out there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Jesus Christ...just when I think there's nothing that could possibly happen to make me like this team more... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juice_32 Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 73 is just the freaking man. I’d love to have a beer with that dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddaryl Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Yeah Dion is has proven to always be a great read.... Straight from the heart stuff right there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
appoo Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Among the recent hires, those that to have good EQ, seem to have the most success. McDermott falls right inline with this. I think going forward, with a more confident, self-assured, empowered generation of kids growing up, EQ is going to be among the more important traits you look for in a leader 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jukester Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 OP. Thanks for posting. I am blown away by this open, honest, touching letter by Dion. You don’t often get this type of glimpse into an athlete’s deepest feelings and emotions but there it was, from the heart. As much as I want a super bowl win for us fans, I want it now more for the players than anything else. They deserve it so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFanNC Posted January 12, 2023 Share Posted January 12, 2023 Love Dion and was impressed by parts I & II,. But I'm not reading this one yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bills!Win! Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Great read. Every time I think it’s our year some stupid team wins whose fan base doesn’t deserve it. This year it’ll probably be someone dumb like the chargers 🤢 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhoTom Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 22 minutes ago, Bills!Win! said: Great read. Every time I think it’s our year some stupid team wins whose fan base doesn’t deserve it. This year it’ll probably be someone dumb like the chargers 🤢 Username doesn't check out. 😉 Just kidding. But seriously, think positive, man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermes Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Man, Dawkins really does such a nice job putting things into perspective. Seeing things from a players viewpoint is so refreshing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beast Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) If you currently or have had a career in Law Enforcement, that last paragraph? It strikes home. Thank you, Dion. We all needed that. Law Enforcement, Football player or anyone. Go Bills! Edited January 13, 2023 by Beast Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColoradoBills Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 This entire season has been a crazy journey and then the Damar Hamlin incident took everyone "down the rabbit hole". I'm all in with this 2022-2023 Buffalo Bills football team. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Jack Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 I saw a couple of interviews he did on ESPN last week about Damar, and was really impressed with how he came across, like he could be THE spokesperson for the team. Here's one of them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muppy Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Our boy Dion Dawkins is a wordsmith He writes with candor love and insight. Great Writer. His writing packs a punch straight to the heart. #TRUTH WORD Dion WORD We love you back. GO BILLS Beautiful letter. 🥀 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLO Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 5 hours ago, 1stgm1993 said: Pats winning *** after 9/11 This has never sat right with me, also part of a trend of teams building a new stadium and seemingly rewarded with winning a SB (think Rams last year) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlfaBill Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 5 hours ago, 1stgm1993 said: Pats winning *** after 9/11 That was fixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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