Damar Hamlin ‘Fully Cleared’ for NFL Return 3 Months After Collapsing on Field

Three months ago, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin nearly died after suffering cardiac arrest and collapsing on the field during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Jan 2. After being hospitalized for a full week, the 25-year-old began making strides toward a complete recovery. Now, the team’s general manager Brandon Beane has announced that Hamlin has been given the go-ahead to return to the field.

“He’s fully cleared,” Beane told reporters during a press conference on Tuesday, April 18. “He’s here, and he is of the mindset, he’s in a great headspace to come back and make his return.”

Beane added that Hamlin sought guidance from four separate specialists in Buffalo to make sure his health was where it needed to be before making the decision to return, with his latest appointment last Friday. “They’re all in agreement. It’s not 2-1 or 3-1 or anything like that,” he explained. “They’re all in lockstep of what this was and that he is cleared to resume full activities just like anyone else who was coming back from an injury.”

In his first interview after the incident, Hamlin described his potential NFL return to Good Morning America as “a tough situation.” He explained: “That’s always the goal, but I’m allowing it to be in God’s hands. It’s a tough situation. They can’t really tell because it’s an up to me thing, I guess. It’s a long road. They just were worried about trying to get me back to normal as much as they can.”

And it wasn’t just his physical recovery that he was worried about. “I’m still trying to process all the emotions in the trauma that comes from dealing with a situation like that and not really having people around or no one in my immediate circle who’s dealt with something like that,” Hamlin added.