3 Buffalo Bills players impacted by Jordan Poyer re-signing

Micah Hyde benefits from Jordan Poyer re-signing with the Buffalo Bills

While Poyer dominated in 2022, Hyde missed almost the entire season after suffering a serious neck injury in the Bills’ Week 2 win over the Tennessee Titans. After having surgery to repair a herniated disc in his neck, he rehabbed the entire season hoping to return to the Bills active roster in the playoffs. When the Bills were eliminated by the Bengals, the dream of having Poyer and Hyde reunited in the backfield ended.

The Poyer re-signing has three significant impacts on Hyde. First and foremost in the minds of Bills fans for the 2023 season, they should form the most dominant safety duo in the NFL. When healthy, either one is a dominant force that can control a backfield and direct a defense. Having two safeties of this caliber at the top of their games on the same roster is something most NFL teams can only dream of. The presence of both playing and healthy at the same time will allow them to be more aggressive on defense and should elevate the level of play in the Buffalo Bills backfield as a whole.

Secondly, Poyer’s presence on the roster affords Hyde the ability to rest and take extra time to recover if needed. Cervical spine injuries can be difficult to manage, especially in football players, and with time can lead to degenerative changes that require careful management to keep the player healthy and on the field. With two top safeties, the Bills will have the luxury of giving each additional rest and managing workloads in an effort to keep them healthy for what is hopefully a deep playoff run in 2023.

And lastly, Hyde can look at Poyer’s contract as a benchmark or a template of sorts. Their situations are not as different as they might seem. Both are in their 30s with serious injury concerns, but dominant when healthy. Both came to the Bills after being late-round draft picks as cornerbacks and then converted to safety where they thrived. Both are loved by the Bills Mafia.

Hyde is entering the final year of his two-year $19.25 million contract. Seeing Poyer struggle to develop the market that he wanted could lead Hyde to explore a contract extension, which would give him added financial security, and could provide the Bills with additional Salary Cap space this season.