Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill says this is why he shoved his coach on the sideline
Five plays after the Chiefs lost quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the remainder of Sunday’s game, receiver Tyreek Hill ran a third-down corner route to the end zone. He was open.
But Chad Henne, who had replaced Mahomes on the drive, didn’t see him. The Chiefs would settle for a field goal.
Hill went to the sideline, sat on the bench and yelled back toward the field.
And then, as wide receivers coach Greg Lewis coach walked past him, Hill stood up and two-hand shoved his position coach.
The TV cameras caught the push, and then they caught Lewis and Hill sitting on the bench shortly afterward, evidently smiling and laughing.
The Chiefs are hoping the takeaway from the altercation will remain there — the aftermath rather than the shove itself.
Hill discussed the incident Wednesday, his first meeting with the media since the Chiefs beat the Browns 22-17 to advance to the AFC Championship Game (Sunday, 5:40 p.m.).
“It’s just my energy level, man,” Hill said. “I feel like I play the game with so much passion. I mean, not only me, but we put so much into this game that I come off (to) the sideline fired up. And I just give my coach a shove. That’s just me and my personality. I’m just fired up. And I’m just happy to be in the NFL to be part of this great organization.
“A lot of people see it as being a hot head on the sideline, being a diva, you could say, but it wasn’t nothing like that. It was just I’m fired up and just trying to give the guys energy. As you see, think about it. I just wish people, everybody, would just think about it. If I would’ve really pushed my coach, everybody would’ve been holding me back. So it was just one of those fired-up (moments); we laughing; we giggling; and we just enjoying each other. That’s all it was.”
Chiefs coach Andy Reid also attempted to downplay the event when asked if he saw the shove and whether he talked to Hill after the game about it.
“They were messing around,” he said. “I know how it came off, but if you know the two of them, if you look at a minute later or 30 seconds later or whatever it was, they’re laughing over there.
“That’s a great room right there. Those guys are very close. They’re lucky to have Greg, and they all know that. So he’s been there, done that. He’s got a great feel for those guys, and I think if you talked to both of them, they’d tell you that they were just messing around with it.”
This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 3:19 PM with the headline "Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill says this is why he shoved his coach on the sideline."