The hearts of Baltimore Ravens fans sank late in the first half of last week’s win over the Cincinnati Bengals when star safety Kyle Hamilton suffered a non-contact injury. As the coaches helped the All-Pro off the field, it was hard not to wonder what it was like. We already have difficulty defending could appear without its best player.

It looks like Hamilton and the Ravens miraculously dodged a bullet. He only suffered a season-ending ankle sprain rather than anything else, and surprisingly will play on sunday against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s a miracle he got back there so quickly, considering how bad it looked at first glance.

In a way, even Hamilton was surprised by this situation. Speaking to the media on Friday, he explained that he initially feared the worst-case scenario was when a Bengals player cut the back of his foot.

“I saw the video; I think he clipped me. I don’t know.” Hamilton said. “I just felt pain, and I was scared at first, because I heard everyone talking about how when you have an Achilles (injury), it feels like you’re being stepped on. So, I guess, I felt like I was being stepped on, but luckily it wasn’t anything like that.”

It also helps that the Ravens have 10 days between games, giving Hamilton plenty of time to rest and recover. Hamilton, who returned to training on Thursday and became a full participant on Friday, feels ready to get back to work.

“I think it helped the recovery process a lot over the long weekend,” Hamilton said. he said. “I’m just playing the waiting game – just doing what I have to do; coming here and getting better and making little improvements every day. (You) can’t get mad about it. I know, it’s just kind of a quick recovery from the injury, I guess I was just trusting the process (and) “I trusted the coaches and they understood me correctly.”

Hamilton has been extremely durable throughout his career, missing just three games in as many seasons. This is a testament not only to his physical condition but also to his mental state.

“I think it’s a little bit of both,” Hamilton said. “I think if I can play, I’ll play. Playing through the pain – I’m not saying I am right now – I think it’s important. We only play a handful of those games. It’s not like we’re in the MLB or the NBA; every single one of those things is important, especially on my team with a league rival.” I want to be available for as much as possible and I think I just grew up saying, ‘If you can go, go.’ So I’m going to do this.”

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