Damar Hamlin cleared to play, 4 months after cardiac arrest

April 19, 2023 ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Having spent the past several months meeting President Joe Biden, raising millions of dollars for his charitable foundation and promoting the benefits of CPR training, Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin can focus now on the next big objective in his life: returning to football.

Wearing a red woolen cap and a Bills blue pullover, Hamlin sat at the podium on Tuesday and said his heart — the one that stopped beating some four months ago during a game in Cincinnati — was, as he put it, “still in the game.”

“This was a life-changing event, but it’s not the end of my story,” Hamlin said. “I plan on making a comeback to the NFL.”

Addressing reporters for the first time since going into cardiac arrest and having to be resuscitated on the field, Hamlin reflected on the anxious moments he’s endured, his inner drive to not let fear stand in his way and how he no longer takes a minute of his life for granted.

“The ‘wow’ moment is every day just being able to wake up and just take deep breaths and live a peaceful life, to have a family and people that are around me that love me,” said Hamlin, who has been medically cleared to play and is taking part in the start of the Bills’ voluntary workout program.