The football world was caught off guard when Tyreek Hill found himself in handcuffs just hours before his game against the Jaguars. It turned out he had a little trouble with the police on his way to Hard Rock Stadium.
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Naturally, the sight of the NFL superstar in cuffs and being pinned down on the pavement sent shockwaves, prompting an outpouring of support from fellow athletes and fans alike, including a fiery response from Stephen A. Smith.
Smith took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his outrage, writing, “Look for yourself. This is BS. Totally unnecessary.”
Smith then compared Hill’s situation to the recent arrest of world No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler on charges of felony second-degree assault on a police officer, reckless driving, third-degree criminal mischief, and disregarding traffic signals. But these chargers were later dropped.
In Smith’s view, the police were far too aggressive with Hill, while Scheffler was sent off without being “faced down on the ground in cuffs.”
The analyst also wrote:
“Then forcibly sat down again by officers a second time. Nah! This story isn’t going away — and it doesn’t need to.”
Even Chris Jones, Hill’s former teammate from Kansas City, weighed in, adding some levity to the situation. “Arresting the Cheetah is crazy,” he tweeted, referring to Hill’s nickname. “Free Reek.”
https://twitter.com/StoneColdJones/status/1832795737362751854?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1832795737362751854%7Ctwgr%5Ed3a91fffd90ee02feb961e632ad3d2d337c7637c%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fathlonsports.com%2Fnfl%2Fkansas-city-chiefs%2Fchiefs-star-chris-jones-7-word-reaction-tyreek-hill-police-incident
Although Jones’ tweet showed his support for the former teammate—Hill was already freed by the time, according to the wide receiver’s agent.
The support from his peers, though, showed that no matter what, the football world has Tyreek’s back. And, in all fairness, the recent reports don’t seem all that harsh.
What led to Hill’s detainment?
The police briefly detained Hill for a traffic violation on September 8, just before his season opener. According to Hill’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, the issue stemmed from a minor driving infraction. However, the roadside video captured only Hill’s detention, not an arrest, and the wide receiver was released shortly thereafter.
ESPN’s Jeff Darlington reported that there was more than what meets the eye. Though the initial haul was for speeding and reckless driving, what conspired at the scene was actually a result of a verbal argument between the wide receiver and the police officers.
That said, the chatter around Hill’s treatment had some strong-voiced opinions from the NFL community. The bottom line, however, is that the Cheetah is back in the wild again, and ready to pounce on the Jaguars for a roaring start to the season.
