Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill has had a rough go of things off the field throughout his career, due to circumstances of his own doing. Both in his tenure with the Dolphins and his last team, the Kansas City Chiefs, Hill has found himself in legal trouble for various incidents.
Hill has also been a distraction for the Dolphins in the past, something that led to a back-and-forth of sorts through the media this past offseason between him and Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, which began when Hill tried to take some accountability for his past actions.
“This whole offseason, I’ve been busting my tail,” Hill said. “I told my dad — I want to see what it looks like when I just focus on football, on myself and family . . . I feel like I haven’t been giving the best version of Tyreek my whole entire career.
“I’ve always been trying to be here and be there, but me being able to slow down a little bit, train and bust my tail for myself and then also for this community and this team, I feel like it’ll be worth it.”
However, Hill’s words didn’t do it for Tagovailoa.
“When you say something like that you don’t just come back with ‘My bad.’ You gotta work that relationship up. He is working on himself,” he said, before later clarifying there was no bad blood between the pair.
“I don’t feel it’s me talking bad about my teammate. I’m just trying to hold him accountable, because that’s what we try to do with everyone on our team. And if this is what we say the standard is, that’s what the standard is, and no one is exempt from it.”
To his credit, Hill took the high road in his response.
“I think Tua’s comments were needed,” he said. “He’s obviously the leader of our team so he sets the standard, so I’m just trying to be the best teammate, best version of myself I can be. Showing up to meetings, coming out here every day and busting my tail in practice, I think it’s important. If you want to be able to leave a legacy, you’ve got to be able to consistently do those things.”
Unfortunately, Hill’s troubles are now on the field as well, as he isn’t living up to his reputation as the league’s premier deep threat. In fact, Hill has not recorded a reception of over 30 yards in over one calendar year, something he was recently asked about by a reporter.
Hill’s response was recorded in a video that is going viral on social media and making waves across the NFL community.
“You trying to piss me off today?” Hill asked.
It’ll be interesting to see if Hill ever recaptures his old form.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.