Former Bills S Micah Hyde opens up about neck injury, playing future

Former Buffalo Bills safety Micah Hyde opened up about his significant neck injury during a recent appearance on Eric Wood's podcast.

Bills safety Micah Hyde celebrates with fans after beating the Jets 27-10. Ag3i4701 / JAMIE GERMANO/ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND

Careers in professional football, for those fortunate enough to secure them, are fragile and can significantly alter—or even end—in the blink of an eye. 

All players know that there’s a relatively short clock on a professional career, but it’s devastating when that timeline is further condensed by situations or circumstances outside of an individual's control, i.e. an injury or ailment. Few know this better than former Buffalo Bills safety Micah Hyde, a free agent who is currently weighing his professional future as he and his family determine the best possible next step.

Hyde has been a stalwart in Buffalo since inking a deal with the team in the 2017 offseason, starting 95 games throughout a seven-year stint in which he earned two second-team All-Pro nods. He’s become not only a beloved figure and locker room leader within the organization, but a regional icon, perhaps serving as one of the players most emblematic of the Bills’ recent ascent back into NFL relevance.

The 33-year-old has not yet determined whether he’ll continue to add to that legacy or put a bow on what has been, to this point, an incredibly productive 11-year career. He’s dealt with significant neck injuries throughout the past two seasons, suffering a season-ending ailment in a Week 2 win over the Tennessee Titans in the 2022 season that required surgery. He returned in the 2023 season but would suffer several stingers over the course of the year, missing three games.

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Hyde’s recent injuries—and the impact they’ve had on his life away from football—have justifiably prompted the veteran to take a step back and assess his future. During a recent appearance on the Centered on Buffalo podcast (aptly hosted by former Bills center Eric Wood), Hyde opened up about his injury, providing a bit of context into the specifics of the ailment and why the decision regarding his future is so difficult.

Will Micah Hyde make a return? He opens up about his neck injury with @ewood70 on Centered on Buffalo. #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/LoeveDTs9K

— Centered on Buffalo (@thebuffalopod) June 21, 2024

“I got the fusion on the disc above, but with that comes the pressure from the disc below, and so the disc below has been the one that’s been aggravating,” Hyde said. “Before I got surgery up in L.A. with Dr. [Robert] Watkins, he mentioned to me, ‘Do you want to continue playing?’ And I’m like, oh, no-brainer, yes. He’s like, ‘Well, you can’t get a double fusion, because the top one is bad, and you need to get something done to even play again, but the bottom one, you’re at risk of maybe damaging that even more if you have [surgery] just to fix the top. 

“I said I want to keep playing, let’s just fix the top. Last season rolls around and that bottom one started acting up. Later on down the road, later on in life, eventually, I might have to get that second one operated on, but I was hoping later on in life and not two or three years.”

Hyde is currently without a club, as his contract with the Bills expired in March. Buffalo fans do not have to worry about seeing him play elsewhere, however, as he told reporters ahead of his Charity Softball Game last month that he’s either re-joining the Bills next season or retiring. He also told the press that there’s “no rush” in determining his playing future.

If he were to return, Hyde would join a revamped Buffalo safety room that added veteran Mike Edwards and rookie Cole Bishop in the offseason. He’d re-inject continuity and experience into a group that, in his absence, figures to have two new starters next season, a factor that rookie defensive coordinator (and former safeties coach) Bobby Babich likely wouldn’t mind.

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