Damar Hamlin is officially back.
The Bills safety appeared on the Bills’ kickoff coverage team after Buffalo opened the scoring in their matchup with the Dolphins at Bills Stadium on Sunday afternoon, according to the Associated Press.
It marked Hamlin’s first action in a regular season game since his terrifying near-death moment last year.
Hamlin, 25, suffered cardiac arrest on “Monday Night Football” on Jan. 25 during the first quarter of a game against the Bengals and needed to be resuscitated on the field.
The game was subsequently canceled as Hamlin was rushed by an ambulance to the hospital, where he spent a week in critical condition and on a ventilator.
Hamlin’s recovery helped him become a hero around the league.
The Bills announced in April that Hamlin was cleared to play.
He was a healthy scratch for the Bills’ first three games this year.
But safety Jordan Poyer’s injury paved the way for Hamlin to make the active roster, though he’s only expected to play on special teams.
Prior to taking the field, Hamlin shared a special moment with his teammates.
He joined them in the pregame huddle before they ran out of the tunnel.
Hamlin was the last Bills player to exit the tunnel before kickoff.
He ran the length of the field with his arms spread before taking off his helmet in the end zone and standing before a cheering crowd.
Hamlin previously returned to the field in the preseason against the Colts, playing 24 snaps and making three tackles.
“Yeah, man, it felt good. It for surely felt like a little weight off my shoulders,” Hamlin said following that game. “Amazing. It just makes me feel like I’m back in that element.”
A former sixth-round pick out of Pittsburgh, Hamlin emerged as a starter last year and recorded 91 tackles and one forced fumble.