Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill wanted to celebrate his touchdown in last Sunday’s game with his mom by giving her the ball in the stands.
A diehard Fins fan had other ideas and cut in front of her. She wasn’t having it, nor were other fans who flanked the would-be pigskin thief.
But all’s well that ends well. Not only did Hill’s mother wind up with the ball seconds later. That lucky fan was paid a visit for a special delivery from Cheetah himself.
@tyreekhillThis is why we play ❤️
This is such a solid-citizen move by Tyreek.
Clearly the manly man man fan had no ill intent and makes it clear in this video that he would’ve never intervened if he knew who the intended recipient was. I’m sure he took a lot of heat and had the surreal experience of going viral in perhaps a 5%, fleeting approximation of whatever Steve Bartman had to endure back in the day. At least Bartman’s case mercifully preceded the explosion of social media.
My superiors here at Whiskey Riff are not going to appreciate that pseudo-stretch of a Cubs reference in all likelihood. I probably shouldn’t be doing this and pushing my luck on Day 2 of the job.
But to circle back to this Miami fan, again, all’s well that ends well. I personally get a kick out of situations like this, when a grown man gets that twinkle in his eye and turns back into a kid again. We could all use more of that in the midst of what can often be a cynical world. Reminds me of why I wanted to cover sports in the first place.
You can’t help but feel good vibes about this Dolphins team in general. And I’m only talking about this year and what’s happening right now. Mike McDaniel has dialed up plays to help Miami produce the most yards in NFL history through the first five games of a season. Tua Tagovailoa is playing like an MVP, thanks largely to having Hill as a go-to guy. If Cheetah maintains his current pace, per ESPN, he’ll finish the 2023 campaign with a record 2,218 receiving yards. SHEESH. That would smash Calvin Johnson’s mark of 1,964.
Between the good karma of this gesture by Hill and McDaniel’s willingness to forgo a field goal attempt after hanging 70 on the Broncos not many moons ago, the stars seem to be aligning for these Dolphins. Especially once De’Von Achane and Jalen Ramsey return from injury for the stretch run, Miami will have the makings of a legit Super Bowl contender.
More context below on the initial Hill TD celebration gone slightly awry:
