ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Throughout the 2024 season, Micah Hyde's locker with the Buffalo Bills has remained unused and his number unassigned. On Wednesday -- 13 weeks into the season -- the veteran safety made his return to the team as coach Sean McDermott said he was re-signing to the practice squad.

Coach Sean McDermott made it clear Wednesday that Hyde will not initially be starting and that they will take his role one day at a time.

"Just to set expectations, Micah is in a practice squad role," McDermott said. "We are fully confident in Taylor Rapp, Damar Hamlin, Cole Bishop, Kareem Jackson. They've all been doing a real good job for us in the roles that they are currently in. They're going to stay in those roles and Micah is in a practice squad role, so good to have him back and his family as well."

He became a free agent after his contract with the Bills came to an end after the 2023 season. Hyde, who is now in his 13th season, openly contemplated retirement and had remained unsigned this season. The former Bills captain for three seasons made it clear that if he was to return, it would only be to the Bills.

The Bills drafted safety Cole Bishop in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft, in addition to signing safety Taylor Rapp to an extension in the offseason. Rapp and 2021 sixth-round pick Damar Hamlin have been starters on defense the entire season.

The Bills' defense is tied for second in takeaways (24) and leads the league in the lowest total QBR allowed by opponents (50.4).

Hyde spent the past seven seasons partnering with now-Miami Dolphins safety Jordan Poyer, starting the most games by a safety duo during that stretch (92). Poyer was released by Buffalo ahead of free agency. Both players had signed with the Bills in free agency after Sean McDermott was hired as the team's head coach in 2017.

McDermott is keeping expectations for Hyde minimal and said, "I say, this respectfully, very little," when asked what's he looking for from Hyde in his return.

"We're in a good spot, very confident in the guys that have played there all season long and have done both done a nice job," McDermott said. "... Very little from the standpoint of just managing expectations is why I'm saying that, right? Very little from hey, you're going to come in and you're going to play and you're going to help. Nah, let's just take it one day at a time and let's No. 1, make sure everybody understands what his role is right now, and we'll just see.

"... It's always about the team and it's never about one person and, in this case, Micah would not want that to be in this case about him."

An injury in Week 2 of the 2022 season led to Hyde, 33, undergoing neck surgery that ultimately kept him out for the remainder of that season. In 2023, stingers were an issue for him late in the year as he missed three regular-season games, but he worked his way back to the field to finish out the season and playoffs.

The veteran shared that he was contemplating retirement following the 2023 season, saying during the Bills' locker room cleanout that it was something that he wasn't in a rush to decide, but would discuss with his family.

The 2017 Pro Bowl selection is now the third-most experienced player on the Bills roster (behind Jackson and Von Miller) and adds a leadership element to the roster.

"[Hyde] could go down to the bank at the corner and be the president of the bank just as easy as he could be the captain of the Buffalo Bills," McDermott said. "So, he just has a unique way about him from a leadership standpoint, to your point, of who he is as a person and his presence and the way he's very adaptable to people and to his surroundings."

Hyde found a home in Buffalo after playing the first four years of his career with the Green Bay Packers, who selected him in the fifth round of the 2013 draft. He recorded 16 interceptions with Buffalo and 42 passes defensed. He also was a key team leader.