NFL insider throws cold water on one of the rumored trade suitors for Dolphins star Tyreek Hill if Miami’s season spirals
At least one NFL insider seems to think that a hotly rumored team eyeing WR Tyreek Hill may not be such a good fit after all.
Should the Miami Dolphins‘ bumpy start to the 2025 season continue, it will be hard to imagine the team riding through the year wire to wire with star receiver Tyreek Hill in tow. Hill took exception to the end of the 2024 season but both sides seemed to find incentive to make things work again in 2025. But things have hardly been smooth after Hill walked back his suggestion that he may want to be traded after Week 18.
Hill was involved in an off-field incident that saw local law enforcement called to his apartment amid a dispute with his former partner, Keeta Vaccaro. He endured two surgeries to repair a wrist injury suffered early in 2024 and he’s now currently subject to an NFL review of the personal conduct policy for potential violations amid new court filings accusing him of domestic violence against Vaccaro.
Miami has aspired to be a team without distractions this season — but Hill has had his share. And Hill could be the product of more if the team doesn’t start winning and Hill doesn’t start seeing the ball. He caught four passes for 40 yards in Miami’s 33-8 loss to the Colts in Week 1. If this relationship does head for a split, one of the possible suitors has been rumored to be the Pittsburgh Steelers. They’ve been adding pieces aggressively this offseason.
But at least one NFL insider doesn’t seem to think the Steelers are a fit — but not because of the on-field talent.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero doesn’t think the Steelers would be suitors for Tyreek Hill
“I don’t foresee Tyreek Hill being traded in the near-term by the Dolphins, barring some type of blow up, which we’ve seen those happen surrounding Tyreek in the past (with) post-game comments. I don’t get the sense we’re there, because the moment that they would trade Tyreek Hill, that’s Miami waving the white flag…you also have to factor in here — bringing in Tyreek Hill would change certain dynamics potentially in your locker room. I don’t see a team like the Steelers bringing in Tyreek Hill period, to be quite frank. Never say never but if any team is going to have inside information on where things went sideways with Tyreek last year, it would be from a team that traded for multiple other Dolphins veterans within the past couple of few months. It just seems like it would be a difficult fit there.”
— Tom Pelissero on the Steelers’ rumored interest in Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill on the Rich Eisen Show
At least one departed Dolphins player, running back Raheem Mostert, has referred to different players being treated to different standards under McDaniel’s tenure, which appeared to fester with Mostert and sour his relationship with the team and, presumably, some former teammates. Perhaps the same could be said for the new Pittsburgh Steelers that Pelissero is referring to — who recognize what Hill’s approach is to the game outside the lines.
Hill talked about being more plugged in this offseason and made the assertion that he’s taking notes in meetings for the first time in his career this summer, a surprising admission. It all of which adds up to a player that any team would need a plan for. Miami’s has appeared to be “appease him with the football” but with those struggles now in place, the pairing has frayed. Miami will need to win to keep it from breaking completely.
Pelissero’s commentary on Hill and the potential volatility he could add to a locker room begs the question why Miami decided that this fit was “salvageable” entering into 2025, per Pelissero during his session with Eisen — but that’s a discussion for another day. Either way, Pelissero is right about one thing. No NFL franchise is going to have a better idea of the circus that Miami’s 2024 seas0n was, particularly with Tyreek Hill, than Pittsburgh thanks to cornerback Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith, who witnessed it first hand. And we should probably be heeding Pelissero’s clues that seem to suggest it was not all fine and dandy between the parties involved last year in South Florida.
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