“Stay Your A*s Right There”: Stephen A. Smith Goes Ballistic on Tyreek Hill for Trying to Chirp His Way Out of Miami

As was often the case this season, Tyreek Hill was not a factor for the Miami Dolphins in Week 18. He caught just two passes for 20 yards as the Dolphins lost a must-win game. Afterwards, he appeared to be angling quite obviously for a way out of Miami now that the 2024 season was over. And Stephen A. Smith was having none of it whatsoever.

Speaking on ESPN’s First Take on “Black Monday”, when most of the talk is usually about head coaching firings, Smith took the time to go on one of his patented tirades, taking aim at Hill. While he acknowledged that Hill, aka “Cheetah”, is “All-World” as well as his “favorite receiver”, Smith told Hill he needs to cool it with the “I want out” tough talk.

“Oh hell to the no, stay your a*s right there. You want to chirp, right? Oh no, no, no, no… Wasn’t that the same dude that said Tua was comparable to Patrick Mahomes? Am I missing something!? … The same Tyreek Hill, who got his bag now, restructured his deal from Miami… I don’t wanna hear about your family. Because your family is when it comes to the money. Not the game. That’s you!”

During his post-game interview in the Dolphins locker room on Sunday, Hill mentioned that his family was a factor in his decision to look for his next chapter elsewhere. However, as Smith pointed out, Hill’s family has been well taken care of by Miami with a recent contract restructure, making Hill a top-five paid player at his position.

Hill wasn’t exactly straight up about his future when he spoke in the locker room. But everyone kind of got the idea. On Monday, he made it all too clear by changing his Twitter profile picture to one of his face cropped onto Antonio Brown’s body, as the latter made his iconic shirtless mid-game exit from a Tampa Bay Buccaneers game a few years ago. That was Brown’s last game as a Buc, so Hill’s message is obvious.

Another reason for Smith’s outrage is the fact that Hill had arguably his worst season as a pro this year, so the wide receiver is not in a very strong negotiating position.

“He was targeted 171 times last year, 123 this year. Receptions, 119 last year, 81 this year. Receiving yards, 1,799 last year, 959 this year. That’s a 38 percent drop in receptions, that’s damn near 800-yard drop in receiving yards. And by the way, he receiving yards per game dipped from 112 to 56.4, which is his fewest since his rookie season. Life’s a little bit different when you ain’t with Patrick Mahomes.”

Smith is bang on about most of that stuff, though Tyreek Hill has had his fair share of success without Mahomes. Cheetah’s two best seasons as a pro came in 2022 and 2023, when he had 119 receptions and 1,700+ yards in his first two years on South Beach after leaving Mahomes.

However, there is clearly now trouble in paradise. Hill probably isn’t the only one in the building that’s frustrated either. He is, however, the only one that has asked out—so far. Considering all the hints he was giving this season, it’s not all that surprising.

Miami would certainly be able to command a high price in trade negotiations. They’d have no shortage of suitors for the 30-year-old either. Tyreek Hill’s production may be down, but his hands and speed haven’t gone anywhere.