Buffalo Bills’ star player reveals special tattoo one year after cardiac arrest incident

Damar Hamlin recently marked a deeply personal milestone with a new tattoo. In commemoration of the first anniversary of his on-field cardiac arrest, the Buffalo Bills safety had a heart hands tattoo inked on the back of his neck. The tattoo, featured on celebrity tattoo artist Alexander Brenes’ Instagram page, depicts hands forming a heart shape with an electrocardiogram at the center.

In an Instagram post, Brenes shared, “1 year later still locked inn,” referencing the enduring impact of the event. Hamlin’s cardiac arrest occurred during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals on January 2, 2023. Collapsing on the field at 8:56 p.m. ET, Hamlin’s heartbeat was restored by on-field first responders before he was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. After a successful recovery, he was discharged from the hospital a week later.

Later in the same year, Hamlin received the George Halas Award, presented to an NFL player, coach, or staff member who overcomes significant adversity to achieve success. Additionally, he was honored with the Pat Tillman Award at the ESPY Awards.

In the current season, Hamlin has participated in five games, registering two tackles. In October, he shared thoughts on his football comeback, nine months after the cardiac incident. Reflecting on the Bills’ 48-20 victory over the Miami Dolphins, Hamlin expressed to the Associated Press, “Really big. That moment was everything to me.”

He went on to elaborate, emphasizing the personal significance of the return: “I think it was more so about promising to myself than anything else, just showing myself that I have the courage, I have the strength, that I have the pride, everything, all those words, in me to be able to go through something traumatic and to be able to come back from it. To be able to still do what I love at the highest level in the world is amazing.”

In that same month, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen shared his thoughts on the impact of Hamlin’s comeback on the team. Speaking on the Let’s Go! podcast, as reported by Pro Football Talk, Allen expressed, “For him to come back and obviously make the squad and be an inspiration, not just to us, but so many people in the world, he’s done so much good.”

Allen highlighted Hamlin’s broader positive contributions, stating, “Not in this area alone, like in the entire country in terms of bringing awareness to CPR and raising money and donating the defibrillators, the AEDs to high schools and little league teams around the country. And I think that that’s so freaking cool that he’s been able to turn such a tragic moment in his life into such a positive movement that could very well end up saving people’s lives. And I think that’s very powerful in itself.”