Inside The Panthers

Damar Hamlin Addresses Losing Comeback Player of the Year

Pitt Panthers alum Damar Hamlin speaks on losing out on NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award

Dominic Campbell

Feb 8, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin on the red carpet before the NFL
Feb 8, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin on the red carpet before the NFL / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- Pitt Panthers alum and Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin has had quite a journey the past two years.

Hamlin stepped up for the Bills in 2022, with safety Micah Hyde out for most of the season. He recorded 91 tackles (63 solo), six tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two pass breakups and a forced fumble in 15 games, starting every game in the secondary from Week 3 onward.

In a Week 17 Monday night game against the Cincinnati Bengals on the road, Hamlin collapsed to the field after suffering a cardiac arrest. He made a comeback from an almost near death experience on the field and came back last season, playing a much smaller role last season.

Hamlin managed to raised millions for his charity, Chasing M’s, which he created to help bring money in for children for McKees Rocks. He received the 2023 NFLPA Alan Page Community Award for his charity work, as well as the George Halas Award, for the player who overcame the most adversity.

Despite making a miraculous return to the field last season, he lost the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award. Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco won instead.

Flacco joined the Browns late in the season and won four out of the final five games, ensuring his team a spot in the Playoffs as a wild card. The 39-year old, who won the Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens in 2012, spent the previous four seasons in more of a backup role and his play with the Browns earned him the award.

Many people were stunned that a backup quarterback won the award over someone who almost died and came back to play the previous season.

Hamlin spoke to Maggie and Perloff on their radio show about missing out on the award. He initially was disappointed, but more so due to his competitiveness. He is happy for Flacco on winning the award and said he is just blessed to be alive and still playing the sport he loves each and every day.

“Yeah I heard about that. When I heard some people were in uproar, but you know, nah. I did at first, not gonna lie. I did a little bit just because, you know, I’m a competitor myself, you know, in any competition you put me in, I [want to] win.

"But, you know, I clapped for Joe as he went on stage and I clapped for him as he went off, you know, at this point in my life, you know, it’s truly God’s plan. So you know, God had a reason for, you know, God had a reason for him getting that trophy. God had a reason for him going out with it and, you know, I don’t want to discredit that any and I truly feel with my journey, my comeback, per se, it wasn’t the world, it wasn’t a worldly thing. It wasn’t something that you know a trophy can define. 

"You know it’s, God gave me his trophy of still waking up every day, still living, still breathing, having a healthy life, having a healthy family. You know, being blessed with every opportunity that I’m placed in right now, you know, I would be crazy to be upset about, you know, one foot trophy, you know, that signifies so much. I don’t want to discredit it at all, because I did want to win, but you know, I feel like my journey is way more spiritual than a worldly award."

Hamlin made 275 tackles, 185 solo, 10 tackles for loss, six interceptions, 21 pass breakups and a fumble recovery in his five seasons at Pitt. He earned Second Team All-ACC honors in 2020 as a redshirt senior, as he made 66 tackles, 38 solo, 3.5 tackles for loss, seven passes defended and two interceptions.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

Follow Dominic Campbell on Twitter.