Even before the season began, many regarded the Buffalo Bills as one of, if not the best team in football. Two weeks later, that train of thought has only picked up steam. Only now, one of their top players is set to miss the rest of the season.
Pro Bowl safety Micah Hyde suffered a neck injury in the team’s Week 2 win over the Tennessee Titans and had to leave the game. Coach Sean McDermott noted that Hyde had to go to the hospital following the game, but he was then described to be day-to-day, leaving us all to believe the injury wasn’t that serious.
Then, Hyde missed the Bills’ practices this week before being ruled out altogether on Friday. Unfortunately, the Bills faithful just received a bigger bit of bad news, courtesy of Hyde’s agent.
According to Jack Bechta, Hyde is going on injured reserve and will miss the remainder of the 2022 NFL season. His goal is fixated on a long recovery process and hopes to be healthy by the start of the 2023 season.
Hyde has one year remaining on his contract at a cap hit of $5.6 million when he’ll be 33 years old.
Jaquan Johnson was Hyde’s immediate replacement on Monday night, and now it looks like he’s set to receive a lot more playing time. Unless the Bills feel it’s necessary to make a roster move as they pursue their end goal of winning the Super Bowl. Perhaps a more experienced, proven option would better appeal to the Bills Mafia. So here are three potential Micah Hyde replacements for Leslie Frazier’s defensive unit.
Bills give Landon Collins a chance
Micah Hyde has proven to be one of the better coverage safeties in football. Last year Pro Football Focus graded Hyde with an 88.5 rating when in coverage. Only now, he’s gone. Aside from Jaquan Johnson, who’s started one game in his four-year career, 2021 sixth-round pick Damar Hamlin is the only other safety on the roster, so it only makes sense to add to the position.
If general manager Brandon Beane decides he’d rather hold onto his future draft picks, turning to the free agent market may make the most sense. If so, three-time Pro Bowl safety Landon Collins could make some sense. The seven-year-pro is still looking to play an eighth year in the NFL.
Yet, adding Collins would require a lot of changes to the scheme, making him an unlikely fit. Collins is more of a box safety or even a linebacker at this point in comparison to the near-cornerback coverage skills Hyde offered. In other words, adding Collins would likely boost the run defense, but the pass coverage would take a massive hit. Not worth it for Buffalo.
Related: Top NFL free agents of 2023: Lamar Jackson, Tom Brady lead the charge
Buffalo Bills replace Micah Hyde with Quandre Diggs
If the Bills want to add a potential playmaker whose performance won’t be too much of a drop-off from what Hyde offered, calling the Seattle Seahawks about Quandre Diggs could be their best option. The 29-year-old two-time Pro Bowler is a do-it-all safety, yet a master of none of the skills that make him an all-around player.
He could be available, depending on the trade offer. The Seahawks can’t be that far away from going full-bore into rebuild mode, and trading one of their elder contributors makes more sense to fit their competitive timeline, which is still at least a year, if not more away. Diggs has tallied five interceptions in each of the past two seasons and has also averaged 77 tackles in that span, he’d be a great addition to any defense.
Related: 2022 NFL defense rankings: Evaluating top 20 defenses entering Week 3
Bengals cash in on Jessie Bates
Another potentially available proven option in the secondary is Cincinnati’s Jessie Bates. After failing to come to a long-term contract agreement, the 25-year-old former second-team All-Pro safety is playing on the franchise tag this season and is set for free agency at the end of the year. But he wants to get paid, and the Bengals have refused to do so.
Perhaps just as notable, the Bengals already drafted his replacement, selecting Michigan safety Daxton Hill in the first round back in April. You can bet he’s itching to receive a bigger role, and the 0-2 Bengals could soon feel inclined to see what they have in their recent draft pick.
As far as what Bates can offer the Bills? He’d provide a youthful influx of talent to the back end of the defense, adding an intimidating hard-hitting safety who’s also shown an elite ability in coverage. In 2020, Bates had a coverage grade of 90, according to PFF.
If the Bengals have a good idea that they won’t be able to sign Bates long-term, why not see if they can get more than a third-round selection for him, as that’s likely what they’d receive as a future compensatory pick if he chooses another team in free agency. And if you’re the Bills, isn’t just over a third-round pick a fair price to pay to keep your Super Bowl hopes alive?
Related: 4 Buffalo Bills who will get massive opportunities in Week 3 versus Miami Dolphins