Tyreek Hill’s game is so much more than mere speed ... or being a ‘return specialist’
If he’d been around in the Negro Leagues era, Tyreek Hill might have rivaled Cool Papa Bell — so fast that Satchel Paige would tell you he could flip the light switch and be in bed before the room got dark. (Nevermind that one room they shared had a short in the switch).
Over in the Marvel Universe, the self-described “Cheetah” would mirror Quicksilver; in DC Comics, he’d be paralleling The Flash.
And in the bubble of the Olympics, Hill’s 200-meter dash personal best in 2012 would have been good for sixth in the London Games. Some wonder if he could challenge Usain Bolt beyond the ways he surpassed him in a set of goofy speed challenges (such as fastest to Tweet) a couple years ago.
(OK, by “some,” we mostly mean comedian and devout Chiefs fan Rob Riggle, who reasoned thusly that Hill was faster than Bolt for a Runner’s World bit a couple years ago: “Let me explain: He’s a Kansas City Chief.”)
All of which we submit not just for hyperbolic amusement but to reiterate a lingering perception of what makes Hill one of the most dynamic and prolific receivers in the NFL:
Heck, a guy who has reached velocity (22.6 mph) that most could only manage by car must have his entire game predicated on speed.
Put another way, in the sneering words of then-Jacksonville cornerback Jalen Ramsey in 2018 — words Hill evidently keeps on his ceiling or in his wallet or locker, given how often they remain his go-to — he’s more “return specialist” than anything else.
“Oh, yeah, that’s definitely up there high on the (motivational) chart,” Hill said with a smile on Wednesday as the Chiefs prepared for Sunday’s AFC Championship Game against Buffalo at Arrowhead Stadium.
For good measure, Hill rattled off a few other such slights he harbors for inspiration. Like how he just happens to “fit well in the scheme.”
The truth is that the Chiefs’ scheme is increasingly contoured to him, as well as dominating tight end Travis Kelce. In collaboration with Patrick Mahomes, this trio makes for a Bermuda Triangle of sorts, where defenses tend to get lost.
And the reality is that the Chiefs have made Hill a fundamental pillar of their offense because he has become a remarkably complete receiver and versatile component of their arsenal, an X-factor that is equal parts catalyst and glue.
His speed is so mesmerizing, and his penchant for sideline antics so distracting at times (including an episode last Sunday with receivers coach Greg Lewis that both coach Andy Reid and Hill shrugged off as playful), that it can be easy to overlook what makes Hill truly great.
The speed is quite a thing. But it wouldn’t mean much by itself.
His rise to the top tier of the NFL is more about everything else.
The balletic body control. Gymnastics-worthy explosiveness that extends well beyond his back-flips. Stunning hops, helpful for a man who stands perhaps 5-foot-8. A relentless work ethic. A stupefying ability to accelerate while cutting, conjuring a skier slaloming downhill ... while on flat ground. Hands of natural stickum. Chemistry cultivated by endless repetition with Mahomes. Evident command of every route in Reid’s overflowing playbook. An uncanny ability to track the deep ball that Mahomes once said would make him “the best center fielder of all time” (like Cool Papa Bell, too).
And much more, in fact.
Even as he keeps refining it all, that’s all also been apparent for several years now, actually, and was nicely expressed by Reid as far back as 2018:
“The thing that kind of gets put aside is he’s a smart kid, innately a smart kid. This stuff, moving him all around like we do and all the motion and shifts and all the gizmos, he’s really good at that. He has no problem learning it, and you don’t have to repeat it and repeat it and repeat it to him. He does a lot of things for us, and he does them well.”
Including his 87 catches for 1,276 yards and 15 receiving touchdowns this season, Hill has 368 receptions for 5,391 yards in five seasons and 58 career touchdowns by land and air — including five in that “return specialist” role. And any broader plus-minus rating would include such moments as running down an Atlanta Falcons defender after an interception to prevent it from being a potential pick-6 in a 17-14 Chiefs victory.
To say nothing of clutch postseason play last season, including the fabled Jet Chip Wasp pass from Mahomes that revived their sagging hopes in the Super Bowl and enabled their rally over the San Francisco 49ers, and what he did to help ward off the Cleveland Browns last week.
Hill had eight receptions for 110 yards in that 22-17 victory, including what was essentially the game-winning play. His fourth-and-1 reception from backup quarterback Chad Henne, who was in the game after Mahomes suffered an injury and was removed per concussion protocols, secured the clinching first down.
The play-call was testament to Reid’s trust in Hill, who lined up tight right, deftly wiggled inside and out and caught the ball running toward the sideline a yard or so behind the line of scrimmage.
Moreover, what Hill did with it was testament to that trust being deserved, and keeping his wits about him:
After Hill whirled upfield with the ball and secured the first down by a few yards, he had the presence of mind to simply plop down on his back to avoid going out of bounds. With just over a minute left, that kept the clock running down on the Browns, who had used up their timeouts.
While the context was epic, the mechanics of the play aren’t among the most spectacular of his career. But it speaks to another important aspect of Hill’s emergence, his sense of being part of something bigger than himself, that he considered it “one of those splash plays” and even “a dream come true.”
As usual, that was hardly the only highlight of the game for Hill, who also had a key early reception to set up their first touchdown, popped up for another and reeled one in after it was bouncing off about every part of his body.
Asked about his concentration on the latter one, Hill expanded on the point in such a way as to lead us inside something more.
“I’ve always been the smallest guy, probably on, like, every team I’ve been on, you know?” he said. “But I’ve always had the most heart, and with that I’m going to always outplay my height. So those 50-50 balls, I want to make every one of them mine.”
He also didn’t want to ever experience the same bizarre outcome that he did on that end-zone play against Denver, in which he actually caught the ball and didn’t know it. That seems a conscious reflection of his yearning to make his game “better, better and better,” as he put it, and walk the talk to get there.
Which takes us back to the start: When Hill was selected by the Chiefs in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, it was based on his speed and potential in a hybrid role more than necessarily as a receiver, Reid reiterated Thursday.
Whatever he was going to be, though, Hill said, “When you come into the league, you think you’re hot (stuff),” and might be apt to assume you’ve got it made.
“Most guys don’t take what’s given to them,” he said.
But for all the speed with which he arrived, and that he will always love to brag about, it’s the other strides at the position that distinguish him.
When asked what elements of his game he’s most proud of enhancing, Hill gave another telling answer.
“Learning from different guys,” he said, from teammates to a number of coaches, including Lewis — the coach he shoved on the sideline, captured by television, after Henne failed to see him open deep.
For the record, Lewis and Hill were apparently laughing a moment later, and Hill said he was fired up “and just trying to give the guys energy.”
And whatever you might have thought of that moment or think of some of his other shenanigans, from commandeering a TV camera in the stands to the deuces/peace sign schtick and more, there’s no doubt Hill does energize the team, too.
And that’s just another element he provides that goes beyond the speed so blinding it might obscure the crucial balance of what he provides.