Can Tyreek Hill Regain the Miami Dolphins’ Trust?

When the Dolphins needed him most last season, Tyreek Hill did what no player at any level should ever do — he quit.”. Fans remember how he pulled himself from a must-win game against the Jets and doubled down after the season with his “I’m out” comment. Now, with training camp underway, Hill wants a fresh start. But trust lost isn’t won back by talking — it’s earned on the field.

Hill has posted career-best numbers in Miami, but the success has been personal, not team-wide. From off-field drama to on-field exits, he insists he’s ready to change:

(Everybody remembers the final moment where you basically said you wanted out, but that was the first year that you had never qualified for the playoffs. What were the emotions going through your mind at that point?) – “My whole life, I’ve always been a competitor. My grandparents raised me that way. I enjoy winning. I know how to lose, but in those moments like that, I need to be better as a leader and I realized that throughout this whole entire offense because ever since me and family got here, this fanbase has been special to us – showing up to different engagements.

Whenever we meet people in the community, they’ve been great. As a leader of this team and also as a leader of this community, I just need to be better in that sense and then just know there are a ton of little kids that look up to me as a player, as a role model. So I’ve just got to remind myself of that and then just take hold of that and then own it.

That’s why this year, this whole entire offseason, I’ve been busting my tail. Me and my dad – I told my dad, I said, ‘I want to see what it looks like whenever I focus just on football and I just focus on myself and family.’ Because I feel like I really haven’t been giving the best version of me, of Tyreek, my whole entire career. I’ve always been trying to be here, 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. So I just want to see what that version of myself looks like, so I’m looking forward to it. Today was our conditioning test and at 31 years old, I must say I haven’t lost a step. (laughter) I’m feeling great. I’m feeling great. That’s all I’m going to say.”

Hill has said the right things all offseason and looks more locked in than ever — but Dolphins fans know talk is cheap. It’s the highlights, not headlines, that will define him.

Hill still has big goals — like chasing 2,000 receiving yards — but now he says stats come second:

(As far as your pursuit, you had mentioned getting 2,000 yards which I think could fit into the offense. How big of a goal is that for you and what do you think that would do for this offense and for this team?) – “I think it would be great, but at the end of the day, football is all about winning games. Being there for your team in those big moments, those crucial downs like third down and just being available for my team. Two thousand – I feel like that’s just a personal goal that I would like for myself, but I feel like the even bigger goal for myself and also for this team is just to win games, win playoff games and continue to build from there.”

Hill’s putting the team above the stat sheet. If he means it, he’ll prove it in January, not July.

Dolphins fans have heard big promises before. So has his quarterback — and Tua Tagovailoa made clear Hill has work to do:

(You talked about WR Tyreek Hill and relationships, after what he said last year did you guys have to rebuild your relationship together?) – “Sure. I would say we’re still continuing to do that. But it’s not just with me, it’s with a lot of the guys. I’m not the only one that heard that. You guys aren’t the only people that heard that. A lot of people that follow football, that follow the Miami Dolphins, that follow Tyreek, that are fans of his; everyone has seen that. So when you say something like that you don’t just come back from that with a ‘hey, my bad.’ You’ve got to work that relationship up, you’ve got to build everything up again. It’s still a work in progress. Not just for me, but for everybody. Like I said he’s working on himself, he’s working on the things that he says he wants to get better with and do better on. That’s the first step to me and so I commend him for doing that.”

Those are the words of a leader. Tua didn’t sugarcoat anything — he knows trust isn’t handed out, even for a superstar. Quietly but firmly, Tagovailoa has grown up. He’s holding one of the league’s loudest voices accountable — and that says plenty about who runs this locker room.

Head coach Mike McDaniel echoed that theme:

(Yesterday WR Tyreek Hill said that he hasn’t been giving the best version of himself his entire career. I’m curious was that self-reflection of his point that he shared with you or was that something you guys spoke about together?) – “Absolutely. He’s been within this building – you can see thus far, the three months that the team has been working at it, that he’s saying that publicly. Why do I say that? Because he’s come to work every day with vigor and determination. I think first and foremost, the only way that you can dictate the terms in life, is you have to take a realistic evaluation of what’s going on and if you’re not happy with certain things you have to put in the work to change it.

I think the whole point – if I can affect the team and the players on it in any way – the one thing that I think is ever-pervasive is adversity is adversity. You have the choice of making it an opportunity or whatever you don’t like about it, you can live that into existence. So humble, accountable, deliberate, intentional daily focus; that’s what we’re looking for and I’m excited for him to get another opportunity to stack another day today, which is Wednesday, Practice 1.”