Dolphins star Tyreek Hill detained by police on way to stadium for season opener

Dolphins star Tyreek Hill was detained and then released for a driving violation on his way to Miami’s stadium for the team’s opening game of the season on Sunday.

Video posted to social media showed the 30-year-old being handcuffed as he lay on the floor face down next to his sports car. ESPN reported that Hill was initially stopped for speeding.

Hill went on to play in Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, which kicked off just hours after his detainment. He appeared to reference the incident after scoring an 80-yard touchdown, celebrating with his arms behind his back as if he was in handcuffs.

“This morning, Tyreek Hill was pulled over for a traffic incident about one block from the stadium and briefly detained by police,” the Dolphins said in a statement. “He has since been released. Several teammates saw the incident and stopped to offer support.”

Hill’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, was travelling in the same car as his client and called the incident “a heartbreaking situation” and “completely unnecessary.”

“I love Tyreek. I hated to see him in the situation he was in with the police … apparently he got a ticket for a moving violation entering the stadium,” Rosenhaus told ESPN.

“How things escalated into the situation that they were in, in handcuffs and being held on the ground with police, is mind boggling to me. I’m deeply concerned by that. Very troubled. We will be looking into it. We will be investigating this. We will look out for Tyreek, but I’m not going to make any allegations at this time. The most important thing is Tyreek is OK physically, mentally he was very distraught about what happened.”

The Miami-Dade Police Department later said it was reviewing the incident.

“We are aware of the recent detainment of Miami Dolphins player Tyreek Hill by Miami-Dade Police Department officers,” the department’s director, Stephanie V Daniels, said in a statement. “I have requested an immediate review of all details surrounding the incident, and we are also reviewing available body camera footage. We will provide updates as further information becomes available.”

Daniels added that one of the officers involved in Hill’s detainment has been placed on administrative duties while the review takes place.

“That should tell you everything you need to know,” Hill said after being told the officer had been moved.

After Sunday’s game, Hill said he wanted to become a police officer in the future but had no idea why he had been detained. “I wasn’t disrespectful because my mom didn’t raise me that way,” Hill said. “Didn’t cuss. Didn’t do none of that. Like I said, I’m still trying to figure it out, man.”

He also said his fame may have stopped the situation from escalating.

“I don’t want to bring race into it, but sometimes it gets kind of iffy when you do,” Hill, who is Black, said. “What if I wasn’t Tyreek Hill? Lord knows what that guy or guys would have done. I was just making sure that I was doing what my uncle always told me to do whenever you’re in a situation like that: ‘Just listen, put your hands on the steering wheel and just listen.’”

Hill is one of the best receivers in the NFL, and has been named to the Pro Bowl in every season since he entered the league in 2016. He led the league in receiving last season with a career high 1,799 yards. He won the Super Bowl with his previous team, the Kansas City Chiefs, in February 2020. He was traded to the Dolphins in March 2022 and signed a four-year, $120m contract extension that makes him the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL.