The Miami Dolphins are eager to get back to the playoffs this season after missing out last year, but the relationship between quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and his top target, wide receiver Tyreek Hill, may need some ironing out first.
The back-and-forth saga via the media started earlier this offseason when Hill tried to take some accountability for the distractions he has caused the team in the past.
“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, Tagovailoa wasn’t satisfied with just words and wanted Hill to prove things with his actions.
“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.”
Now, it’s Hill’s turn to respond, and he seems to be taking a measured approach.
“I think Tua’s comments were needed,” Hill said, via Pro Football Talk. “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.”
It’ll be interesting to see what the pair’s dynamic is on the field this season.
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.