Welcome to the terrible take, a daily segment telling steel our nation what's on our

minds. I'm Melanie Freelander. As we head into Pittsburgh's regular season

finale at home against the Cleveland Browns, I'm going to stray from my habit of talking all things Steelers.

Because this past week wasn't in any way normal for the league.

I'm one of tens of millions of NFL fans who follow the story of De Mar Hamlin almost obsessively

filled with shock and worry when he collapsed during Monday night football and now feeling a sense of

communal joy and relief as we see him progress back to health.

Honestly, was there anything better than seeing his smile and the FaceTime screenshot he posted on his

Instagram story yesterday? The features that have dominated social media this week about

the Buffalo Bill Safety, who stepped into a starting role in his second year in the

NFL, have introduced fans of other teams to an enthusiastic, humble, and generous young man who spends his free

time giving back to his community in Western Pennsylvania.

It seems like a miracle that he wasn't taken from his family and friends and teammates way too soon. Many credit

the power of prayer for Helmand survival. With that said, this story unfolded

exactly as it should have from a medical standpoint.

Fans would guess what happened was a one in a million event

because it's rare in the NFL.

I could be missing a case, but I believe this is the first time an NFL player

suffered a cardiac arrest during a game since

1994. Bears running back Merrill Hodge had to be revived when his heart stopped

in the trainer's room after collapsing during a game due to repeat concussions. But cardiac arrests

do happen in young healthy athletes.

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