Tyreek Hill – May 24, 2022
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Tuesday, May 24, 2022
WR Tyreek Hill
(Now that you’ve had a chance to get on the field with WR Jaylen Waddle, how do you think you guys’ games kind of complement each other?) – “I think they complement each other very well. Just having another speed guy on the other side of you, that definitely puts a lot of fear in a lot of d-coordinators’ minds, so I’m very excited for the year. I’m excited to see what Tua’s going to do especially, so we’re all ready for it.”
(Have you heard from the defenders out here about how challenging it can be to defend you guys and all the speed you guys offer?) – “Yeah, man, it’s just all locker room chatter. But for me, I’ve been in this league a long time. None of that really means nothing because at the very end of the day, you’ve got to line up and you’ve still got to play ball, so you can be the fastest guy on the field, but it’s all about knowing where to be at, especially for the quarterback just for the quarterback’s timing. So that’s the thing that’s real special about this team; we have a lot of guys who are wanting to be coached, who want to get better. So like I said, I’m very excited to be a part of this team.”
(You get some exercise then on the practice field. It seemed like they were using you downfield a ton…) – “That’s what I do, man. (laughter)”
(It wasn’t like a veteran’s day for you.) – “That’s what I do, man. Like when I came here, I signed up to work. I didn’t sign up just for the paycheck. I also signed up to be a team leader and also lead this team and show this team how I do things. And how I do things is I work hard and I want the guys behind me to follow that. So I just can’t be a guy in our locker just saying, ‘hey, you guys should be doing this, doing that.’ I’ve got to be that guy who’s willing to come out on the field and work hard and show these young guys how to get the job done and potentially win a Super Bowl, so that’s what I’m here for.”
(You mentioned QB Tua Tagovailoa. What do you think of the way the ball comes from him now that you’ve experienced it for a little bit here?) – “I mean it’s nothing weird. At first, I thought it was going to be something crazy – the ball going all over the place, but Tua actually has probably one of the prettiest balls I’ve ever caught in my life. It’s very catchable. I don’t want to continue because the more I talk, the more it sounds weird. Tua is a very accurate quarterback. That’s all I’m going to say.”
(We saw the video that you posted kind of in response to the one video that got a lot of reaction, so why is it so important for you to – QB Tua Tagovailoa kind of declines to comment on a lot of the reaction around him, but why is it so important for you to speak out and kind of support him?) – “I just feel like football is all about confidence and I’m very confident in my quarterback. So I just feel like if I’m able to help him get all the confidence in the world and push other guys to push that confidence into him, then the sky’s the limit for the guy because he’s a heck of a talent, has crazy arm strength, arm talent. So like I said, we’re all excited just to watch him sling the ball each and every day.”
(What about your confidence? You obviously come across as a very confident player. Was it always that way when you were this tall or…?) – “Oh yeah, I’ve always been like that. That is something that my grandparents instilled in me. I just feel like without confidence, you really can’t do anything because the mind is going to help you get to where you want to get. I just can’t come out here and just feel sorry for myself every day. Just like today – I had a very hard day of just running back and forth. I could have easily just said, ‘you know what, I give up, I already got what I wanted.’ Yet still my mindset, my confidence; I just want to get better. I’ve got too much pride in this game. I was telling somebody that the other day. I’ve got too much pride in this game. I want to get better. I want to learn from Coach (Mike) McDaniel. I want to learn from the OC (Frank Smith) and I want to learn from Coach Wes Welker, so I’m just willing to elevate my game even more. That’s just the way I think.”
(QB Tua Tagovailoa wasn’t here today, so you played with QB Teddy Bridgewater. What’s it been like with him on the field?) – “With Teddy? Oh, it’s fun. I think the world of Teddy also. Teddy is another veteran guy who can come in and just sling the ball all across the field, so it feels good to have two quarterbacks who can come in and do the same thing – ball on time, ball in the right place – so it feels good.”
(I was just going to ask you about the playlist today because it was all over the place, man.) – “The playlist was terrible. (laughter) I’m sorry to tell you (Christian Wilkins) that, bro…”
Christian Wilkins: “I’m going to see you in the locker room. (laughter)”
Hill: “I’m joking, bro. Besides the Clemson – was that a Clemson…?”
Wilkins: “That was the Tiger Rag.”
Hill: “That was nice. I was turnt off that. I like that though. (laughter)”
(It was all over the place, right?) – “It was all over the place, man. He was even playing Disney music. Was that Disney music you were playing?”
Wilkins: “I started with that.”
Hill: “I have no idea what was going on today. I felt like I was in my living room with my kids again. I was like, ‘yo, this is getting crazy.’ (laughter)”
(So have you had a day with the playlist or have you been an orange jersey guy?) – “No, I haven’t been an orange jersey guy. I guess I haven’t been working hard enough for Coach (McDaniel), but hopefully I can get it.”
(When LB Melvin Ingram came to you guys in Kansas City, what do you remember he brought to the team?) – “Just that veteran leadership. Just adding another brother to the locker room. I just feel like with me and Melvin, me and him grew close in the locker room outside of playing football whether we were playing basketball at one of my good buddy’s gyms in KC and just building that bond together. So when he came here, I was all for it. I’m very excited because I really know what Melvin can bring to a team – his mindset, just the way that he approaches his work, his craft and he’s just able to get around guys like Christian (Wilkins) and Emmanuel (Ogbah) and it’s just going to crazy, man. That d-line is going to be crazy.”
