For the first time since being shockingly cleared by NFL investigators, Tyreek Hill spoke to the media on Sunday and apologized for the disturbing audio tape that was leaked to the public featuring Hill saying some very unpleasant things about his child and then fiancee Crystal Espinal.
In the audio, Hill is heard telling Espinal “You need to be terrified of me, too, b–ch” when she tells him that the child is “terrified” of Hill. It is not up for debate whether or not it was Hill on the audio. He has admitted as much. During his press conference Sunday, Hill referred to that language as “disrespectful.”
I’m just here to man up to what I did. On audio. My bad language. I’m going to man up to that. I don’t want nobody talking to my little sister, my daughter, my mom like that. It’s very disrespectful.”
The message Hill was attempting to convey makes sense. The words he used? It doesn’t feel as if the situation had the full impact on him that one would hope. Telling a woman — or, really, any other human being — they need to be terrified of you and using the B word? Disrespectful is selling those words a little short.
Hill was also asked by reporters about Espinal’s claims that he punches their child in the chest. In the audio, she said “Which you do, when he starts crying. Which you do. You make him open up his arms and you punch him in the chest. And then if he gets in trouble, you get the belt out.”
The receiver, in what was the final question allowed by Chiefs PR, claimed he “really can’t get into that” and then attempted to say that the punching was a reference to boxing lessons he would give his son because the child is a fan of super heroes and likes to box.
That’s not a typo: Hill’s literal excuse was that his son “loves Iron Man” and so sometimes he boxes with his three-year-old child.
“Punching my son in the chest would probably refer to me teaching my son how to box,” Hill said. “Cause we do got boxing gloves at our house. And our son, like, he’s like Iron Man, he loves Iron Man, Aqua Man, he’s like ‘Daddy, daddy, come on,’ all the time.”
Kids like to rough house. They do it frequently. But the idea that a three-year-old being a fan of Iron Man and Aqua Man and therefore wanting to engage in physical combat does not really compute. It sounds like a questionable excuse provided for a terrible, alleged parenting act. There is never an excuse for punching a three-year-old child. Nothing could possibly justify it. Ever.
It is worth noting that on the original audio that leaked out, Hill denied doing anything to hurt their son. And on Sunday he said that things get taken “out of context” when “feelings get involved.”
Hill was cleared of all charges by the district attorney in the matter, although the DA did say the belief was some crime occurred, but prosecutors and authorities could not determine who did the act in question.
“This office has reviewed all the evidence and has declined to file charges against Tyreek Hill and Crystal Espinal,” Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe said. “We are deeply troubled by the situation. We believe a crime has occurred; however, the evidence in this case doesn’t establish who committed a crime.”
The NFL did its investigation leading up to training camp and ultimately concluded it could not determine if Hill violated the Personal Conduct Policy.
