Tyreek Hill surprised many this offseason by moving from the Kansas City Chiefs to the Miami Dolphins, and Hill has been vocal since the trade about the possibilities he sees with the 'Fins offense. Hill recently opened up about why he left the Chiefs on the debut episode of his new podcast, and says part of the reason was the Kansas City not utilizing him enough.
Hill said he did not want to become a "diva," but was surprised by the team's offensive approach.
"If teams are gonna give us favorable one-on-one matches against their best corner, I don't see why teams don't utilize their best receiver," Hill said. "And that's where probably like me and the Chiefs fell apart right there. When I'm like, yo, I don't mean to talk or be a diva in some situation, but can I see the pill some time, please? Just give me the ball, please."
Signing with the Dolphins meant a four-year, $120 million deal with $72.2 million guaranteed. Hill wanted respect more than anything, he said via Pro Football Talk, and his contract paired with the team's plan for his abilities made him want to leave the Chiefs.
"I tried my best. I talked to the big man, [head coach] Andy Reid. I talked to the quarterback. I'm like, 'Look, can we make something happen? Can we make something happen? Can the guaranteed money make sense to me? Can it make sense to my family, please?'"
Obviously, a deal that made sense to both parties did not happen and now Hill is getting ready for his first season with the Dolphins. He now goes from Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes to Tua Tagovailoa as his quarterback (and said Tua is more accurate).
Expanding on his thoughts on how he wants to be treated by teams, Hill said, "I don't care about notoriety, though. I don't care about none of that. The only thing I care about is respect within the building. Notoriety outside the building, I don't care about none of that, man. Because none of that ain't gonna win us games on Sunday.
"I want the head coach to know that on Sundays, that defenses fear Tyreek Hill. That's what I want the head coach to know. And the head coach do know that, though. He know that without the Cheetah on the field, he know that, 'Hey, Pat [Mahomes] you're gonna have a long day today.'"
The 28-year-old's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, also commented on Hill's departure from K.C., saying there were many times he and Hill felt the wide receiver was "underutilized" and "wasn't fully appreciated."
He said Hill did not make a big deal about not being used enough, calling him a "trooper" and saying he was professional and "did not make a peep about it."
Hill still made an impact on the field last season, but his yards per reception dropped to his lowest since 2016 and he was not in the top 5 for targets at his position, despite a career high of 159. He had less receiving yards in 2021 than he did in 2020 and fewer touchdowns.