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Less than one year ago, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin nearly lost his life on the turf at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.
Fast forward a bit and Hamlin is miraculously back with the team.
On Sunday night, after all the fans had empty the stadium and long after the Bills 21-14 loss to the Bengals, Hamlin returned to the spot of his nearly fatal cardiac arrest.
He took a moment, sat, and reflected.
All of this was caught on a now-viral video from Olivia Ray of WLWT Cincinnati.
Damar Hamlin is alone on the field at Paycor Stadium postgame. An emotional scene as Hamlin spends nearly 15 minutes at the logo in Cincinnati.@WLWT | #Bengals pic.twitter.com/FJhma2l8wW
— Olivia Ray (@OliviaRayTV) November 6, 2023
“I don’t know what to expect. You know, this is unique to me as well,” Hamlin said earlier in the week of his return to Cincinnati. “All I know is I’m walking in with courage. I’m walking in with strength and I’m walking in with my brothers. You know, and I’m walking in with my mom, my dad, my family. And I’m walking into, you know, an environment of people that supported me the entire time. They continue to support me, you know, on both ends. So, you know, it’s a lot of love. I can’t wait to receive it and give it and show my gratitude, you know, but ultimately we’re going up there to get a win.”
Hamlin has played in just three games this season and did not play against the Bengals. Though Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott noted that the movie was purely a “football decision.”
That clearly didn’t stop him from returning to the field, however. And hopefully it did not stop him from getting some sort of closure on what was an undoubtedly a harrowing moment for all involved.
Both Buffalo fans and fans across the league have since rallied around Hamlin.
And his comeback to the NFL, even while limited, has been nothing short of remarkable.