Despite needing to play two NFL games in the span of 96 hours, the Miami Dolphins are grappling with a swirling controversy that has very little to do with football.
For the unaware, while the Fins won on Sunday (they beat the self-destructing Jacksonville Jaguars 20-17 in Miami) the big story everybody wanted to talk about after the three-point game was what happened to superstar receiver Tyreek Hill before the game.
The outspoken Hill found himself at the center of a raging controversy when, just hours before Sunday’s tilt, the Miami game- breaker was pulled over and arrested by police for speeding, according to ESPN.
The incident swiftly went viral for two things:
- Hill is a bona fide NFL superstar (the league listed him as the No. 1 player in football going into this season) and he happens to be black.
- Aggressive police body cam footage was involved.
The viral footage quickly proliferated across social media, and you can view the clip for yourself below:
WARNING: The following clip contains language that some viewers may find offensive.
SLATER SCOOP: Tyreek Hill body-cam video from Miami-Dade Police. pic.twitter.com/aJvD4SamZk
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) September 9, 2024
It was an overall ugly incident marked by Hill’s defiance of police orders (it is inarguably dangerous for police officers to deal with a rolled up tinted window), as well as the way in which police reacted to the defiant Hill and other Dolphins players.
Do you think the cop should get his job back?
Dolphins defensive end Calais Campbell and tight end Jonnu Smith were also at the scene and were detained. Smith received a citation, according to ESPN.
The entire ordeal drew all manner of responses from across the political spectrum.
Some on the left took this as an opportunity to blast police (again), with at least one also bizarrely attempting to connect the incident to former President Donald Trump.
Some took to social media to admonish Hill for his role in the brouhaha.
The fallout from the incident largely echoed memories of the riotous response to the 2020 death of George Floyd while he was in police custody, and given that, it’s hardly a surprise that the Miami-Dade Police Department promptly placed one of the officers involved on “administrative leave.”
But now, that officer wants that de facto suspension lifted, and is willing to fight to get his position back.
“We call for our client’s immediate reinstatement, and a complete, thorough, and objective investigation, as [Miami-Dade PD] Director [Stephanie] Daniels has also advocated,” attorneys Ignacio Alvarez and Israel Reyes said Tuesday, according to USA Today. “Our client will not comment until this investigation is concluded and the facts are fully revealed.”
According to ESPN, the attorneys did not divulge the identity of the officer on “administrative leave.”
Alvarez added: “We urge all parties to refrain from making public statements that may misrepresent our client’s actions and mislead the public about Mr. Hill’s detainment.”
The Dolphins and Hill will play again Thursday, when the team hosts its bitter divisional rival, the Buffalo Bills.
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