a lesson from tyreek hill
October 10, 2025
I happened to watch the NFL night game in which Miami’s great wideout Tyreek Hill got hurt. The network seemed to replay his injury repeatedly for a few painful minutes. The game stopped.
The following day, the Dolphins confirmed that Hill is out for the season with left knee dislocation and torn ligaments, including the Anterior Cruciate Ligament. Ouch. A torn ACL comes with estimates of roughly a one-year absence, but multiple ligaments being torn could result in a longer timetable.
Sadly, season-ending sports injuries are very common. One source said that in 2019, there were 158 players who suffered season-ending injuries out of roughly 2,000 players under contract to NFL teams. Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Theismann, whose own career was cut short by an in-game injury, said of the experience “Football is played by very large, fast men running at each other at top speed.” That doesn’t take away the pain, it just helps to characterize it.
Back to Tyreek Hill. Something struck me about watching Hill in the moments following his injury. When they put him onto the golf cart to take him off the field, he understandably must have been in extreme pain. But did you see the look on his face? He was smiling and waving to the fans in the stands. Let that sink in for a moment. A body part is twisted in the wrong direction, and he is smiling at the fans. We’re talking ear to ear grin. With a wave to match.
There are some lessons to learn here.
Professional sports are played for the fans. He gets it.
It is OK to put on a brave face. Smile in the midst of pain.
It is also OK to cry once in a while.
Full disclosure – I watched that game from my hospital room, just a few days removed from open heart surgery. I was in pain but not smiling. My respect for Tyreek Hill grew geometrically.
