Despite signing Tyreek Hill prior to the 2022 regular season, the Miami Dolphins are still in search of their first playoff win of the century. With nothing but a consecutive pair of Wild Card losses and a losing 2024 record to show for it, Hill has voiced several frustrations since the end of the season.
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As potential trade rumors continue to swirl, the star WR certainly hasn’t helped matters with his coy signaling on social media that he isn’t particularly attached to Miami. After a series of emojis, including multiple peace signs, were posted by Hill as a response to speculations about a trade, fans and pundits weren’t fans of his cavalier attitude.
However, Cam Newton isn’t buying the hype. On the latest episode of his 4th & 1 podcast, the Carolina Panthers legend suggested that folks are simply reading into Hill’s posts a bit too much.
“That’s a grown man, we live in the land of the free. If we’re going to give him the ability to use his platform… I didn’t look at it as him throwing a deuce. That’s his celebration, so let’s not read into this too much. Tyreek has always voiced his want and desire to win, and to be impactful to the win. There’s nothing wrong with that, he’s a competitor.”
While he did maintain that the wide receiver likely has no malicious intent behind his tweets, Newton also noted that the backlash was the result of Hill being held to a higher standard. Believing that you should have a sense of obligation once an investment has been made in you, the 2015 regular season MVP explained that:
“Do you drive a Ferrari in the mud? Do you wear your new shoes in the rain? We hold value to valuable things. We hold them to a standard. Tyreek is making a lot of money, so therefore, he needs to act accordingly to the value that’s expected of him.”
In stating that social media itself has changed the way in which we evaluate players, Newton believes that everyone needs to take a step back from the digital realm. Ultimately, he suggested that not everything posted online needs to become a scandal.
“It got realer when social media came out. It got realer when you weren’t able to hide. You were to hear… but now to see it… We’ve got to have grace for certain things.”
While a decrease in screen time would be good for all of us, the reality of the situation is that anytime a superstar athlete teases something on social media, the fanbase and media are bound to react. After all, headlines do put food on the table.
On the most recent installment of the Up & Adams show, the renowned Kay Adams found herself taking the same route as the aforementioned Newton. In claiming that she’s not going to read into Hill’s online antics, the Fan Duel TV host surmised that the posts are nothing more than Hill having a bit of fun.
“I think he likes to agitate. I think he very much doesn’t even do it for virality, I think he does it for himself. He enjoys pulling strings and playing and toying with people. It’s like sport for him for a little bit.
While the words of the two analysts may be soothing to a concerned Dolphins fanbase, only Hill truly knows what his next move is going to be. Until an official announcement is made, the public will simply have to wait and watch.
