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Marcel Louis-JacquesESPN
BUFFALO, NY – Buffalo Bills and safety Micah Hyde agreed to a two-year extension, the team announced on Friday, keeping him in Buffalo during the 2023 season.
The two-year extension is worth $ 19.25 million, the NFL Network reported.
A Pro Bowler in 2017, Hyde is among the leaders in defending the Bills and forms one of the league’s security pairs alongside Jordan Poyer.
Hyde was scheduled to become a free agent after the 2021 season. Now he, Poyer and cornerback Tre’Davious White are hired until at least the 2022 season. Each trio came to Buffalo during the same off-season and Hyde said the trio came focused on changing the culture within the Bills organization.
Having reached the AFC Championship four years after his tenure, Hyde was not interested in leaving what he helped to build.
“We felt that when we got there at 17, the organization was obviously not where we would like it and I thought that in recent years we have been able to turn the situation around,” he said. “I would have had a big empty hole in my stomach if I had gone anywhere else – because this team is going in the right direction.”
Originally crafted by the Green Bay Packers in 2013, Hyde left Green Bay after the 2016 season, after the Packers told him in the middle of the season that they would not hire him again. Hyde said that experience “left a scar” and that he “can’t even put it into words” what his first contract extension means to him.
“It was a pivotal point in my career when I really looked in the mirror and said, ‘We really have to change that and get better,'” he said. “I think that with the opportunity I had in Buffalo, it came hand in hand.
Since joining Bills in 2017, Hyde is Bills’ third leading defender with 282 combined tackles and ranks third with nine interceptions and 25 defended passes. He finished with 70 tackles and an interception in 2020.
In addition to his field contributions, Hyde has often tried to play as a recruiter for the past few seasons, to no avail. He said that anyone interested in joining Bills is more than welcome, but he has not forgotten the number of times his offers have been declined in the past.
“I would talk to some of the free agents I am close to, we would have conversations and they would visit us,” said Hyde. “I said, ‘hey man, come to Buffalo’ and they said, ‘Alright, I’m going somewhere else’.
“Well, at the end of the day, I bet they’re very upset that they didn’t make those visits with Buffalo because they’re probably sitting on a garbage team or sitting on a couch somewhere else. That’s kind of my ventilation, like You can see, I’m a little angry that I’ve been rejected so many times and guys kind of throw us under the rug. “
Bill’s GM, Brandon Beane, foreshadowed an extension during his end-of-season press conference, proclaiming his Hyde fan.
“I haven’t seen any fall from Micah this year, so I can’t say that I think he’s declining or anything,” said Beane. “I am a huge fan of Micah Hyde, just what he brings not only on the field, but in our building. You feel me. One of the most positive personalities to be around and just a super competitive guy. feel it when you’re just talking to him in an interview. He probably doesn’t feel competitive in an individual conversation.
“But when he’s in that field, he’s one of the most competitive guys and that’s what you love about him. I think he will definitely still play for years in this league, if he wants to.”