NFL
By: Rick O’Donnell
Let’s all be honest with ourselves, the Tyreek Hill situation is not something you want to see as a fan. Hill aired out his grievances after the Miami Dolphins lost their final game of the season against the New York Jets. Everyone can play it off as the frustrations of being a competitor, but how much will that change going into next season? If he’s back next season, will it he come in with the same frustrations?
Hill has every right to be pissed off. As a former Super Bowl champion, missing the playoffs for the first time in his career. The problem is, you’re a leader on this team, a captain and that role comes with responsibilities to more than just “what’s best for you and your family.” As a man, as a human being, you have those obligations and you can and should make decisions based on that. However, as a veteran, a captain, and a Super Bowl champion you have an obligation to your teammates to do what’s best for them as well. If you don’t want to fill that role, don’t accept the “captain role”, simple as that.
With that being said, I can’t speak of what happens behind closed doors, on the sideline, in the locker room, or in the huddle because I’m not there. I can say that Tyreek is an amazing player who has had a series of bad luck since coming over to the Miami Dolphins; those situations may have added to his frustrations. Most of these are not worth diving into because they’re that man’s personal life and shouldn’t have anything to do with what happens on the football field.
However, even though as a competitor, he can be as mad as he wants maybe it’s time to reflect inward instead of projecting out. Take a look inward and see what kind of distractions he has been to the Miami Dolphins. All the posts on X/Twitter he says he’s just posting to troll could’ve been time used to inspire his teammates, be a leader, or pick guys up when they’re down. Unfortunately, he’s too worried about the Tyreek Hill brand to reach his true potential.
All season long, every time you turned on coverage or saw the team on social media, fellow team captain Calais Campbell was rallying the troops or being the voice of reason. He’s not out there campaigning for his spot on the all-time players list. He’s not worried about social media trolling. The only thing that matters to him is picking the boys up and getting the next W (at least from what we see on camera). The whole “we before me mentality has led to his long and respected career of 17 seasons.
That’s where the problem is and the question the Miami Dolphins have to face. As one of the veterans, as one of their team leaders, and as a captain will Tyreek Hill ever get to that level of leadership if he comes back to the Miami Dolphins or will he shut down at the first signs of frustration? Will he be the type of player who’s focused more on getting into the Ring of Honor than the Pro Bowl? If not and if he can’t get back to being the player they thought they brought in, will it even be worth it in the end?
