Kevin Everett

The heart-warming story from this year’s NFL season has nothing to do with Tom Brady’s marriage proposal at media day nor does it have anything to do with any Patriot-related themes.

Kevin Everett, the Bills tight end, has made one of the most heroic and remarkable comebacks that anyone has seen in recent years.

Mainly a special teams player thus far into his career, Everett went to make a tackle during the second-half kick-off during the Bills’ season opener against the Denver Broncos. His helmet struck the shoulder pad and helmet of receiver Domenik Hixon and Everett fell awkwardly, face-first onto the turf. He was later diagnosed as being paralyzed from the neck down.

The video is everywhere these days and as I watched it more and more this week, I began to notice how it seems like Everett is twitching while lying on the ground. A sickening and horrifying sight that brings chills to any athlete. A spinal cord injury is just about the worst nightmare for anyone who has ever played a contact sport.

What makes Everett’s tale the feel-good-story of the year is what started after he was carted off the field. He was given “bleak, dismal” chances of recovering and was told he would probably never walk or even use his arms again.

Now just about five months after he was injured, Everett is walking and using his arms to tell his story to just about anyone who will listen.

Instead of dwelling on how his playing career is over at the age of 25, he is looking forward to appreciating his life, which for a while was in question of continuing. A lot of people would sink into a depression and have trouble letting go, but Everett is making the most out of his refreshed life.

"I was so used to working out and being around my teammates, that's kind of hard," said Everett. "But I'll be ok. ... I don't see it as God picking on me or anything. I just see it as one door closes, another one's going to open. I just have to figure out what it is."

He is currently working with the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis and is talking about looking into coaching. He also is preparing to get married which is probably just as painful as all that rehab he underwent.

Three days after being injured Everett was moving his limbs. A month after the injury he was walking with the assistance of a walker. Two weeks after that he was standing up without assistance.

That kind of recovery is remarkable especially when you consider that he couldn't even pick himself up while lying face-first on the turf. He is a remarkable athlete and as people are discovering he is an incredibly remarkable human being.

Five months is an extremely short period of time. It flies by faster than you realize and in that short amount of time, a person suffered a life-threatening injury and recovered from it.

What are you going to do in the next five months?