Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill has slammed ESPN analyst Keyshawn Johnson over comments he made about quarterback Tua Tagovailoa heading into the 2022 NFL season. 

Tyreek Hill is set for a much different 2022 than he experienced the previous six years that he was in the NFL, as he has to get used to some new surroundings after he was traded, for a very handsome amount it has to be said, from the Kansas City Chiefs to the Miami Dolphins this past offseason. 

The biggest adjustment for him is set to be the man who will be throwing him the footballs over the course of the season, because having caught passes from Patrick Mahomes since the 2018 season, he now has to catch them from Tua Tagovailoa, and the difference in talent is certainly a vast one as the numbers will tell you.

Mahomes threw for 4,837 yards and 37 touchdowns whilst Tagovailoa could only put up 2,653 yards and 16 touchdowns last season for example, and it is that difference that Hill will need to overcome this season if he’s to carry on the electric form that’s seen him put up 6,630 receiving yards and 56 touchdowns in his career.

But as well as having to adjust to a new quarterback, Hill has spent a lot of the past few months having to defend Tagovailoa and the way he plays, and there were even more arrows coming the way of Tagovailoa yesterday from ESPN analyst Keyshawn Johnson.

What has Johnson said?

Speaking on Keyshawn, JWill & Max, Johnson expressed his concern about the Dolphins and their quarterback heading into this season, claiming that he doesn’t feel confident about Tagovailoa and Hill being able to connect on a consistent basis, especially when you consider how many targets that the offence has to work with:

And Hill, once again, was not going to take these comments lying down.

Hill fires back

Responding to Johnson on Twitter, Hill hinted that there might be some form of agenda from Johnson when it came to Tagovailoa and his skill and that this wasn’t necessarily a fair criticism about Tagovailo and that it might just be criticising for the sake of it:

You have to respect Hill for sticking up for his quarterback the way that he has during the offseason and preseason, but ultimately the best way to shut the ‘haters’ up, will be to put up some incredible numbers when the regular season starts.

Looking at Tagovailoa’s numbers from last season, it’s going to take something big for him to get some respect from members of the media, and hopefully Hill will be the one to make it happen.