The Buffalo Bills’ stellar season has led to former Pro Bowler and two-time second-team All-Pro safety Micah Hyde coming out of retirement.
While Hyde, 33, will start off on the practice squad, Bills head coach Sean McDermott has a clear plan for the 12th-year veteran. Hyde, who retired after an injury-riddled season in 2023, brings leadership to the team.
“I’ve said this when he was here playing; he could go down to the bank at the corner and be the president of the bank just as easily as he could be the captain of the Buffalo Bills,” McDermott
told reporters on Wednesday. “He just has a unique way about him from a leadership standpoint, of who he is as a person and his presence and the way he’s very adaptable to people and to his surroundings.”
Hyde was a standout during his first stint with the Bills from 2017 to 2023, tallying
417 tackles, 16 interceptions, 42 pass deflections, and three forced fumbles. While the Bills have the sixth-best pass defense for yards allowed, veteran leadership and depth can’t hurt.
Buffalo (10–2) could make a run at the
AFC’s top seed in the playoffs. The team has its sights on its first
Super Bowl bid since the 1990s. Hyde has played his share of playoff games, with 17 under his belt between his time with the Bills and Green Bay Packers.
Hyde began his career with the Packers as a fifth-round draft pick out of Iowa in 2013 and helped Green Bay reach the NFC Championship Game twice,
in 2014 and 2016. He also played for the 2020 Bills squad that reached the AFC Championship Game, the furthest the team has been since 1993.
During Hyde’s time in Green Bay, he tallied eight interceptions, 227 tackles, 24 pass deflections, and two forced fumbles. He has one forced fumble in his playoff career with the Packers, but Hyde has yet to record a pick.
That could change when the postseason arrives, but how many snaps Hyde will see remains to be seen. McDermott emphasized his satisfaction with the current defensive backfield on the 53-man roster amid the announcement of Hyde’s return.
“We are fully confident in Taylor Rapp, Damar Hamlin, Cole Bishop, Kareem Jackson; they’ve all been doing a real good job for us in the roles that they are currently in,” McDermott said. “They’re going to stay in those roles.”
