It has been a significant offseason for Buffalo Bills star Micah Hyde and it will continue to be so as he determines his future in the NFL. He spoke more about the possibility of retirement Thursday during his annual charity softball tournament to the media where he said flat out that he either plays for the Bills next season or hangs up the cleats for good.
“It's Bills or retire,” Hyde said according to Bills reporter Sal Capaccio.
While the NFL season is underway in the fall with already some voluntary camps going, Hyde made sure to tell the media that showed out to his charity event that he is in “no rush” to make a decision. He talks about what his days after the end of last season consist of which is usually involving his family.
“No rush at all. I feel like I’ve been an open book. You guys know everything that I know,” Hyde said. “I got away after the season, got out to San Diego. My days consist of working out, swimming with the kids, just trying to continue to help my wife out with the kids, and continue to physically and mentally prepare myself — if anything were to happen.”
Hyde talks about the neck injuries and reflecting from them
Despite being in the twilight years of his career at 33-years old, Hyde has also had some injury problems, specifically with his neck. That has been a huge factor in pondering over his decision to possibly retire as he mentioned how “difficult” it was to deal with “those stingers.”
“I really don’t know. You guys know … how difficult it was with my neck and having those stingers,” Hyde said. “So I just said, let me get away from it a little bit. And if the time comes and the juices get flowing again, then we’ll try to give it a spin. But, there’s no rush at all on my side.”
While Hyde is taking time with his decision, where does that leave Bills general manager Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott? The star defensive player made sure to express to the media that there is open communication with the team on his thought process and what he feels is best for his future as it is paramount for him to lead a “healthy life” for his family.
“Just got done talking to them and we’re all on the same page,” Hyde said. “I am 33 years old, man. I want to have a healthy life and my family’s the most important thing to me. At the same time, I do want to win a Super Bowl — that’d be pretty damn awesome. So, we’ll see. We’ll take it day by day.”
When Hyde originally thought about retiring from football and the Bills
The thoughts about possibly ending his career came when Buffalo's season came to an end by the hands of their AFC rivals in the Kansas City Chiefs where they were once again defeated by them in the playoffs. Reflecting shortly after, he spoke truthfully about having thoughts on retirement and even said then that he was in no rush to come to a decision.”
“Every year when you lose, you wake up the next day and you’re filled with so much frustration because you weren’t able to get it done,” Hyde said, via Mark Gaughan of the Buffalo News. “This morning I woke up and I’m like, ‘Wow, that was a run. That was an amazing run we went on.’ I’m forever grateful for this team, the hard work and the resilience this team has showed. I just have no idea what the future holds right now. I’m going to sit down, maybe in a couple weeks or something, and talk to the wife and talk to the family. But we’ll see. I’m in no rush, no rush at all.”
Bills defense depleted from other events
In terms of his contract, Hyde's deal was up after the this past season as he began in the NFL in 2013 where he was drafted by the Green Bay Packers. He would play four seasons with the Packers before starting his journey with the Bills that lasted now seven seasons where Hyde has been a foundation of Buffalo's defense since then.
If Hyde does decide to retire, it would be a cleaning of the Bills defense as they lost some crucial pieces to the secondary like Jordan Poyer who is now with an AFC East rival in the Miami Dolphins and Tre'Davious White who was released by the team and now with the Los Angeles Rams. Last season, Hyde recorded two interceptions, 37 total tackles, and seven deflections for Buffalo.
Hyde suffering a bad neck injury in 2022
Hyde underwent neck surgery in the fall of 2022 where he suffered an injury in the area in Week 2 of the season which could be pointed to as the time when retirement really started to hit the mind of the Ohio native. During that time, he spoke about that Monday night game against the Tennessee Titans when he was hurt and said it was “eye-opening” according to the team's website.
“What happened that Monday night was something that just was eye-opening to me,” Hyde said. “And I understand that this is a violent game. This is – anything can happen on any given night, but that was just real eye-opening to me, hopping in the ambulance after or during the game and going to the hospital with my wife. I got a two-year old, and a one-year old and so, that life was put right in front of me, and it kind of scared me a little bit.”
Hyde had a history with neck injuries before the scare in 2022
Unfortunately, it would not be the first neck injury Hyde had at the time as there were other minor issues coinciding with the big one which made it worse for him.
“It's something I've been dealing with playing for many years. It's something that scared me that I didn't think it was possible. And then it happened. And, you know, here we are,” Hyde said.
As the Bills await the decision of Hyde, they are in the stages of looking to bolster their roster and prepare for the 2024 season as they are coming off of a relatively disappointing time. While they won the AFC East and had a 11-6 record, they were once again eliminated by the Chiefs in the playoffs despite them being at home as they look to change the narrative this season.
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