ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. β Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin is ready and excited to play in front of his family and friends in his hometown of Pittsburgh during the Bills-Steelers preseason game on Saturday night.
"I'm going to see my entire family. I'm going to see my entire city. I think it will probably be electric down there, I can't wait," Hamlin said.
Hamlin has been making some pretty significant milestones in his comeback journey over the past couple of weeks and months. He started first by wearing full-pads at training camp in Pittsford and has now most recently on Saturday played in his first game since suffering cardiac arrest and collapsing on the field in Cincinnati earlier this year.
"It was super fun," Hamlin said. "It was a great experience. Just another milestone on the step of getting back to myself as far as in the football space and in the NFL. So, just chopping this tree down as much as I can, one step by one."
However, on Saturday, Hamlin's journey will hit an entirely new phase of emotions.
"Just like there's so much love in Buffalo, it's the same love in Pittsburgh," Hamlin said. That's why I can really claim Buffalo as home, because since I got here, it's been so much love, it's like I got adopted into another environment."
"The cities have so many similarities," Hamlin said. "Just as far as culture and just how everyone's like a big family. There's so much support around sports and around life so going home, it will be just like turning back into this stadium."
In addition to his love for the city of Pittsburgh due to its proximity to where he grew up, Hamlin also spent time there in the offseason with his Chasing M's foundation as a part of his CPR tour. Hamlin's tour also went through Buffalo and Cincinnati, clearly the other two very important places in his life and journey.
So, come Saturday, Damar Hamlin's hometown and what he considers his second home will link together on the field at Acrisure Stadium Saturday night for a scheduled 6:30 p.m. kickoff.