Buffalo Bills center Mitch Morse has cleared the concussion protocol and returned to practice on Thursday.

Morse sustained the sixth documented concussion of his career during the third quarter of a victory over the Miami Dolphins on Dec. 17. He sat out a win over the Chicago Bears seven days later.

“Right when it happened, you knew that I was concussed,” Morse told reporters on Thursday. “And one of the nice things was I understood the process, the program, understood that all the people I talked to, the experiences I have gone through in the past.

“You know, at first it was a little emotional. But you kind of get out of that. And then you get into the protocol, and you get into the everyday deal. You start feeling better, you understand that it’s just one of those things. It’s part of my story and my football story. Feeling healthy.”

Morse, 30, has started all 108 games played during an eight-year NFL career. He spent his first four seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and the last four with the Bills.

Morse, who is a Pro Bowl selection this season for the first time, said he plans to play Monday night when the Bills (12-3) have an AFC showdown with the host Cincinnati Bengals (11-4). However, coach Sean McDermott said the team will monitor Morse closely up until game time.

Morse understands the need for caution.

“You know, everyone’s got something they got to deal with,” Morse said. “And I’d had two good years of mitigating everything I could, and this is one of those things, it was just unavoidable. We handled it the right way. They were very precautious with me. I was very honest with them. You know, had some conversations with people that I cared about, and we just marched on.”

Star receiver Stefon Diggs (illness), safety Jordan Poyer (knee) and running back Taiwan Jones (hamstring) sat out Thursday’s practice for the Bills.

–Field Level Media