Safety Damar Hamlin makes Bills' 53-player roster 8 months after near-death experience

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin made the cut.

Some eight months after a near-death experience during a game at Cincinnati, Hamlin's fearless bid to resume his football career approached completion on Tuesday when he made the team after the Bills pared their roster to 53 players.

Though general manager Brandon Beane has stressed changes could still be made to the roster before the Bills open their season at the New York Jets on Sept. 11, what's undeniable is the courage Hamlin has shown in reaching this milestone of his comeback by reclaiming a backup role behind starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer.

What began as a national theme of "Prayers For Hamlin" has turned to praise for Hamlin, who put aside hints of trepidation in each step of his recovery.

It's a journey that's taken the 25-year-old from being placed in a medically induced coma after going into cardiac arrest and needing to be resuscitated on the field, to returning to the turf to take and deliver hits at full speed during practice and three pre-season game appearances in one of North America's most violent professional sport.

"I made the choice that I wanted to play, you know, it wasn't nobody else's choice but mine," Hamlin said of his approach after a three-tackle outing in Buffalo's pre-season-opening win against Indianapolis three weeks ago. "So, when you see my cleats laced up and my helmet and shoulder pads on, there ain't gonna be no hesitation."

A week later in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Hamlin was selected to take the field as a captain for the coin flip before the Bills' game against the Steelers.

"It was real special, like a moment of serendipity, just like life coming full circle for me," he said following the game in which finished with three