ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The surgery Mario Williams had to fix his sprained left wrist appears to have also done plenty in repairing the Buffalo Bills' high-priced defensive end's self-confidence.
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Williams was in an upbeat mood Monday in discussing how much better he felt physically and mentally after rejoining the Bills following the team's bye week off, and six days after having arthroscopic surgery in Alabama.
"Nobody wants me to do better than me. So definitely, with this procedure, it's definitely given me a lot of hope and a different mindset," he said. "I feel like I was stagnant. That's why I'm very excited to have been able to go clean it out and being optimistic about things."
And that includes the NFL's highest-paid defensive player declaring himself ready to play on Sunday, when the Bills (3-4) travel to play the Houston Texans (6-1), Williams' former team.
"Oh, I'm definitely, definitely (playing). I'm not missing anything," he said. "It uplifts me tremendously. ... I'm definitely excited. This is a great week."
He was held out of practice on Monday with coach Chan Gailey saying the plan is for Williams to be back on the field for Wednesday's session.
"I talked to him, and he sounded very encouraged," Gailey said. "Hopefully, he doesn't miss a beat."
Selected first overall by Houston in the 2006 draft, Williams had 53 career sacks in six seasons to set the Texans franchise record. Three days into free agency in March, signed a six-year, $100 million contract with Buffalo.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press