Michael Hoecht had a tough first season with the Buffalo Bills.

First, he had to serve a six-game suspension, which prevented him from making his Buffalo debut until Week 8 against the Carolina Panthers. He had an excellent showing that week, with three tackles and 1.5 sacks, and continued to play well in Week 9 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Hoecht had two tackles and a half-sack but was unable to finish the game. During the fourth quarter, the veteran pass rusher suffered a torn Achilles, ending his season after just two games. As I wrote back in November, Hoecht refused to let the injury defeat him as he promised to be back soon.

Will Michael Hoecht be back for Bills training camp?

It sounds as though that wasn’t an empty promise as Hoecht has been seen running individual drills during OTAs and recently said he wants to return for training camp. Bills general manager Brandon Beane was asked about this while appearing on One Bills Live, and said he also expects Hoecht to be there during camp. Beane did add that Hoecht loves the work it takes to be a success, but believes they might need to protect him from himself.

“Mike loves every single part of the process. Loves every single thing that it takes to get ready to play an NFL game. He definitely feels like he got cheated last year on being able to play and help this team,” Beane said.

“Again, we’re going to have to protect him from himself. He’ll be ready to go at camp, but we’ll still have to monitor him. There may have to be some half days, or just kind of limit some reps.”

Buffalo is preparing for its first season under defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard and players such as Bradley Chubb, Greg Rousseau, and T.J. Parker have been in the spotlight. Leonhard is known for bringing the heat in the pass rush with multiple players and while those three will get their chances, Hoecht has been somewhat overlooked, but could provide a huge spark.

Michael Hoecht looks to put 2025 in the rearview mirror

Shortly after signing a three-year, $21 million deal with Buffalo, Hoecht learned he would be suspended for the first six games due to a violation of the NFL’s PED policy.

Hoecht took responsibility for being “careless,” while calling it a low point in his career. He now has a chance to get the bad taste out of his mouth from the rocky start in Buffalo, and that fresh start could begin as early as this summer.