A miracle return from near death is the ultimate comeback. Damar Hamlin, a safety with the Buffalo Bills, was named the Comeback Player of the Year on Friday. With just two tackles in the regular season, Hamlin’s performance had minimal bearing on his award. Rather, Hamlin was chosen by the Pro Football Writers to make his NFL comeback. The Pittsburgh product, who only made his game debut this fall, was on the verge of death during a late-season game last year.
Despite Hamlin’s limited playing this season, his miraculous recovery story continues. Last season, in Week 17 of a game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Hamlin gave out. For ten minutes, first responders performed CPR and AED. Critically ill, ambulances raced the defensive back to the hospital. Later on, the team verified that Hamlin experienced a commotio cordis episode and went into cardiac arrest.
Hamlin participated in just five games this season, hardly playing at all. He only recorded two tackles. The 25-year-old got two more tackles in his team’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs during the playoff game last weekend. During a fake punt, he was given a rush attempt, but he was unable to gain the necessary yards for the first down. Last season, Hamlin was nominated for Comeback Player of the Year and finished
Joe Flacco of the Cleveland Browns had the best chance, bar none, to earn Comeback Player of the Year, along with Damar Hamlin. After Cleveland failed to find a suitable replacement for the injured Deshaun Watson, the 39-year-old joined with the team late in the season. After five starts, Flacco led the Browns to a 4-1 record with strong play. Against eight picks, he passed for 1,616 yards and 13 touchdowns. During the 2022 season, the six-foot-six signal-caller recorded just five touchdown passes with the New York Jets.
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CPOTY contenders were Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Chargers and quarterback Baker Mayfield of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mayfield, who threw 28 touchdowns versus ten picks, guided the Bucs to the postseason. In the previous season, he was a player for the Los Angeles Rams and the Carolina Panthers, throwing eleven
