FOXBOROUGH — It's an unusual week for the New England Patriots as they've been dealt the task of preparing to beat the Buffalo Bills just days after one of their safeties, Damar Hamlin, went into cardiac arrest during their game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night.

Before the Patriots could focus on preparing for a game in which they practically need to win in order to make the playoffs, they shifted their concern on Hamlin and his family, hoping the player would end up being OK. Matthew Slater, who is the longest-tenured Patriots player, shared that Bill Belichick asked him to pray with the team for Hamlin's health earlier in the week.

“I think my role this week has been to lead spiritually,” Slater said Thursday. “I’ve always felt like that was my role on the team. You guys (in the media) have been covering me for a long time. You know that my faith is the most important thing in my life. Far more important than me playing the game. So I’ve tried to be there for guys in that way.

“My family and I have been praying for Damar and everyone involved in the situation, and I think it’s evident that a lot of people are praying, because he seems to be making some great progress.”

With Hamlin improving and awakening early Thursday for the first time since Monday's traumatic event, it appears that Sunday's game will go on as scheduled. Sitting at 8-8, the Patriots can clinch the final Wild Card spot in the AFC if they win that game. They could also still make the playoffs if they lose the regular-season finale, but a few other teams would have to lose, too.

Patriots safety Adrian Phillips said that “we all have the desire to be in the playoffs and we've got to do what we've got to do to be in the playoffs,” though also acknowledged that there isn't really a clear way to work through the challenges this week has brought.

“I wish I had the answer,” Phillips said when asked how to prepare for Sunday's game considering the cirumcstances. “You just try to go through it the best you can. You say your prayers, you talk to the players on the other side and let them know you’re praying for them, and go out there and have the mindset to win the game. That’s pretty much all you can do. Just be in the moment at the time.

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Patriots center David Andrews also had a similar response to a similar question, saying “I don't think you can block it out,” adding “everyone’s dealing with it. We just have to do our best to move forward and get ready to play this game.”

“We’re navigating that as we proceed through the week,” Andrews said. “I think everyone’s trying to, as best they can, focus on doing their job, and being prepared to play on Sunday. I’d be lying if I said it was an easy thing to do, because it’s not an easy task. We’re just doing our best to take it day by day.”

But as the Patriots are focused on winning Sunday's game to reach the playoffs, there's nothing that they're concerned more about than the health of their fellow players, especially Hamlin as he's still in critical condition.

“Myself, my family, I think our entire team and our entire organization has been praying for Damar,” Slater said. “I think our primary concern is that he makes a full recovery. That’s the thing that we care about the most.

“So we’ll sit up here and you guys will ask me a bunch of different questions, but I just want make that clear, that we are praying for Damar’s well-being. We want to see him healthy. We want to see him well. Obviously, your heart goes out to his family, his teammates, their organization. But first and foremost we are praying for him and just asking the Lord to do what the Lord does. So I want to be clear in [stating] with that.”