A devastating season-ending injury has Tyreek Hill considering his football mortality.
The Dolphins’ star receiver has not yet made up on his mind on retiring, but acknowledged that it’s a possibility following the left ACL tear plus other ligament damage he suffered Sept. 29.
“I feel like that decision is based upon how I feel and where my mindset is at the moment,” Hill said Thursday on the “The Set” podcast. “Right now, I’m happy. I’m happy with being with my kid, I’m happy with the career that I’ve had. I love playing football. I love it, man, but it takes a lot. … It takes a lot to be the best, and stay at the top and make a lot of money, help your team win game and stuff like that. It takes a lot man. It takes a lot on you mentally, it takes a lot on you physically.
“I’m at the point now where I need to have a conversation with mom, family, everybody. Wherever my mind is at the time, the decision will be made, but I just know right now, I feel like I haven’t had time to live in the moment and be in the moment with my family so I just want to be in this moment with my family. … I don’t want to make any rash decisions, obviously.”
Hill will be 32 when next season opens and it seems he will be a free agent since reports have surfaced that the Dolphins are likely to part ways with him.
He signed a three-year extension worth $90 million with $65 million in guarantees in 2024, which takes him through the 2026 season.
This season marks his 10th in the NFL, the last four with the Dolphins following a six-year Chiefs run.
It’s certainly possible Hill could return and still be a top receiver, but major surgery on a speed-base wideout is never a good thing for a 30-plus player.
He suffered the injury during Week 4 while being tackled during a pass near the sideline.
Hill’s knee bent in a gruesome manner and he had to be carted off the field.
The mercurial receiver stunned some by smiling while being taken off the field, and he explained that the reaction stemmed from his focusing on the positives.
“When I got tackled, I immediately tried to get up … I’d seen that my leg was crooked,” Hill said on the podcast, per ESPN. “I immediately started laughing because I’ve been able to play this game for 10 years, really my entire life, and I’ve been blessed with great talents and great gifts. The amount of support I get from my family, it’s amazing. So I really wasn’t even thinking about the injury. I was thinking about the great times I’ve had playing this game.”
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With the Dolphins (1-6) headed toward a disastrous season that could potentially result in coach Mike McDaniel being fired and perhaps even Tua Tagovailoa being replaced at quarterback, there are plenty of changes seemingly on the horizon for the AFC East franchise.
That future almost certainly won’t include Hill, but he’ll take his time during recovery to decide if he still has that competitive urge after a strong decade in the NFL.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
