"Shawne Merriman is back in Buffalo. He says he's healthy. He says he's ready to produce on the football field.

That's beautiful music to the ears of Buffalo Bills fans.

"I feel good, man," Merriman said Wednesday at One Bills Drive. "I feel very good. Just having that time off and being able to do more specific things that are going to help me get better was great. Now it's just about getting back and playing football again."

Merriman is the giant X-factor on the Bills. He is a 27-year-old former All-Pro who terrorized the NFL for 39.5 sacks his first three seasons. But his last three seasons have been plagued by injury. A sore Achilles tendon ruined his season in 2010. If he's fully healthy, he is the biggest potential difference-maker on the entire Buffalo roster.

He says he is fully cleared to practice when the Bills hit the field Saturday for the start of training camp at St. John Fisher College.

"When the guys go out and practice I'll be right there with them," he said. "I'll be able to go out and do everything. There's going to be certain days where they're going to say, OK, let's scale it back a little bit and amp it up for the next practice, or whatever it is. But I'm ready."

Merriman missed virtually all of the 2008 season with a major knee injury. He eschewed offseason surgery that year in the hopes that he could play but managed to appear only in the opener. He came back in 2009 but was plagued by nagging injuries, including the Achilles. He managed about a third of the defensive snaps and made four sacks. In 2010, he was slowed by the Achilles and a calf injury and saw only limited duty in four early-season games with San Diego. Buffalo claimed him off waivers after seven games, but he never hit the field for the Bills."