Peyton Hillis gets visit from HOFer two weeks after heroic efforts

Among the notable former NFL players to comment on Smith's Instagram post was his fellow Hall of Fame teammate with the Dallas Cowboys, quarterback Troy Aikman, as well as Buffalo Bills Hall of Fame wide receiver Andre Reed. 

Smith grew up in Pensacola, Florida -- where Hillis' rescue of his two children occurred -- and played at the University of Florida before being drafted by the Cowboys.

Per TMZ Sports, Hillis is recovering at Escambia County medical facility.

The former 2008 seventh-round draft pick was helicoptered to the hospital on Jan. 4 after he, according to TMZ Sports, "jumped into the ocean on Pensacola Beach in order to save two of his children who were caught in riptides." 

His uncle, Greg Hillis, wrote in a Facebook post that the former "Madden" cover athlete suffered kidney and lung damage as a result of the rescue, and family and friends had held a prayer vigil for him following the incident.

Hillis' girlfriend -- actress and singer Angela Cole -- wrote on her Instagram page last week that the former Arkansas Razorback was off the ventilator and on the "road to recovery."