The title of comeback champion is ceding by this Cleveland Brown. Many believe that quarterback Joe Flacco of the Browns and Buffalo Bills defense/specialist Damar Hamlin will compete for the title of NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Naturally, following a terrifying cardiac arrest incident in the previous regular season’s penultimate game, Hamlin made a comeback to the NFL, with Flacco taking over as the Browns’ starting quarterback due to injuries to their starting lineup.
But there would be no competition if it were up to Flacco. “I just think mentally to get yourself back to the point where you feel comfortable doing that kind of thing, obviously the physical part doesn’t need any explanation, but the mental part, especially at his position, is pretty cool,” Flacco said to Zack Gelb, presenter of CBS Sports, on “Anytime you’re getting recognized in this league for playing well, it’s flattering.”
The fact that Flacco participated in the Browns’ only third AFC playoff run since the team’s 1999 rebirth has led some to suggest that he should be given more credit. Contrarily, Hamlin played on just 17 defensive snaps in five regular-season games, mostly protecting the punter in personal formations (which included a try at a fake in the Divisional loss to Kansas City last weekend).
However, Flacco made it clear that Hamlin’s battle was far greater than his own, even though he returned to the field at the age of 38 to try to salvage the Browns’ season. “It’s a cool group to be a part of, that’s for sure,” Flacco stated. “I’m just coming back from being old and not being on a team for a couple of months.”
Even with his somewhat subdued foresight, Hamlin’s comeback and recuperation turned out to be a motivational tale on and off the field. Not long after making his regular season debut in October of 2023, Hamlin said that he had silenced his harshest critic—himself.
According to John Wawrow of the Associated Press, Hamlin stated following a 48-20 victory over Miami, “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.” “It’s amazing that I can still do what I love at the best level in the world.”
Among the other awards given at the forthcoming NFL Honors on February 8 is the Comeback Player of the Year title. The other quarterbacks on the latter’s list are Baker Mayfield (Tampa Bay), Matthew Stafford (LA Rams), and Tua Tagovailoa (Miami), in addition to Hamlin and Flacco.
